Despite training return: Kofane, Badé and Ben Seghir will barely ease Bayer's troubles in the derby

Bayer Leverkusen's injury crisis persists despite three players returning to training; Kofane, Badé and Ben Seghir unlikely to feature in Sunday's Cologne derby.

Bayer Leverkusen face a mounting injury crisis ahead of their Bundesliga derby against Cologne on Sunday. After suffering a 2-4 defeat to Stuttgart, the club had eight players sidelined. Three of those — Christian Kofane, Eliesse Ben Seghir and Loic Badé — returned to training on Wednesday ahead of the midweek Europa League fixture against Marseille. However, manager Carles Martinez cannot count on them for the derby, as their recovery remains incomplete and they are unlikely to provide meaningful relief to the squad's injury woes.