RB Leipzig coach Marco Rose ahead of top match against Leverkusen

RB Leipzig head coach Marco Rose will only decide shortly before the top match who will replace the suspended defender Willi Orban in Leverkusen. In addition to Lukas Klostermann, he also has Mohamed Simakan to choose from. "One of them will definitely replace him. We'll see then. Mo can also play at right-back, so we have a lot of options and possibilities to have both of them on the pitch," said Rose ahead of the Bundesliga showpiece at Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday (18:30/Sky).

He was unable to draw any major conclusions from the double winners' 1-0 win in the DFB Cup in Jena, apart from the fact that "Jena did a great job as a regional league team. In terms of our game, you can't draw too many conclusions because six or seven other players will be on the pitch at the weekend," analyzed Rose.

However, he expects Bayer to be just as strong as in the previous season: "The team has strengthened again, added experience and quality, now with Nordi (ed. Mukiele). A great team with a great coach and a clear idea. Difficult to defend and difficult to play against. Leverkusen will definitely be a force to be reckoned with again."

Starting role possible for Nusa

New signing Antonio Nusa, who scored on his debut in the DFB Cup and in the Bundesliga opener as soon as he came on, could also make a starting appearance for the champions. "Antonio has shown us twice that we were right to sign him. That means he gains confidence with every successful experience and the option of starting appearances increases," said Rose.

Goalkeeper rotation when it "makes sense"

After Peter Gulacsi spoke out in favor of a rotation in goal with Maarten Vandevoordt due to the many demands in the league, Champions League and national team, Rose also sees this approach. "It's always good when a player understands that his colleague also has quality and ambition to play," he said, praising Gulacsi. "I don't think Pete meant that we now put a different player in goal every week. But of course he sees that Maarten is a great goalkeeper who is also here to show himself". Rose will try to decide "what makes sense" in close consultation with goalkeeping coach Frederik Gößling.