Still set under Matarazzo
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The new coach of TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, Christian Ilzer, has apparently made one of his first squad decisions: Florian Grillitsch, who was in defensive midfield under his predecessor Pellegrino Matarazzo, no longer plays a role under his Austrian compatriot, according to “Sky”. The 29-year-old was told during the week that he could look for a new club in the winter, it is said. He was missing from the squad for the Bundesliga game against RB Leipzig on Saturday afternoon.
Grillitsch is under contract with TSG until 2026, so under normal circumstances a transfer fee would be due in the event of a move. Its market value is currently 6.5 million euros. The 50-time ÖFB national player, usually part of the squad under Ralf Rangnick, returned to Sinsheim in the summer of 2023 after a year at Ajax Amsterdam. In two stages, Grillitsch played 196 games for Kraichgauer, four times as many as for Werder Bremen, where he once became a professional.
The news caused a surprise in the TSG forum on Transfermarkt, although some users praised Grillitsch’s performance for 15th place in the table. have been clearly criticizing in recent weeks, “Um, what? “Okay, that’s a very quick and drastic decision, if that’s true,” says “fixerfux”. “Gladi” says: “What Grillitsch played for long stretches of the last few weeks was alibi football. I think this should also be understood as a signal to others. I think it’s good that we’re starting to sort things out here. Schicker and Ilzer did the same thing in Graz.”
Grillitsch should leave Hoffenheim: That’s what the fans say
TM member “mmlhr” writes: “Basically, I could explain it by saying that he can fully exploit his strengths when he has the ball at his feet for a long time. Lure the opponent, absorb the pressing and pass the ball to his colleagues, who then use the space. Or to put it briefly: Grillo fits into a team that plays possession football and Ilzer teams represent something completely different. Added to this is his ‘advanced’ age, his probably not low basic salary and the fact that there are only two transfer phases in which he can move for a significant fee.
You can understand that:
a) Bishop has passed Grille, Uhumcu is close to it.
b) Stach will probably play more in midfield, as will Prass
c) Prömel will hopefully be on the record soon
Then there isn’t much room left for crickets. …
When asked about his future – an extension or another change – Grillitsch said in a Transfermarkt interview around two weeks ago: “I’m not ruling out both. I’m not worried or under any pressure at the moment. If an interesting club came along, we would certainly get together. You would have to see what the points of view are from all sides.” He also said as advice to younger players: “You should be present at discussions or negotiations as often as possible. So that you can hear and notice things for yourself. There’s so much money at stake in football that things don’t always go right.” It looks like this will become relevant again for him in the coming weeks.
