Published24 August 2024, 20:09
FC Basel: Party scandal and expulsion: FCB star speaks out for the first time
Benjamin Kololli speaks openly about the incidents at the start of the season. He stresses that all misunderstandings have now been cleared up and the focus is back on football.
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This is where Xherdan Shaqiri trained with FC Basel for the first time.
Nils Hänggi/20 minutes
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After a defeat at the start of the season, Thierno Barry and Benjamin Kololli were dropped from the FC Basel squad due to disciplinary problems.
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Kololli now explains that misunderstandings with the sports director led to the sanction, which have since been cleared up.
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And he says: “It was stupid of us. We talked about it and we realized that we messed up.”
Now that savior Xherdan Shaqiri is back at FC Basel and there have been three big wins across all competitions, the scandal at the start of the season at Red and Blue has probably been somewhat forgotten by some fans.
As a reminder: Thierno Barry, who has since been sold, and Benjamin Kololli were thrown out of the squad for the game against Lugano after the opening defeat against Lausanne. They were part of a group of seven who went out partying in a club for too long during the week. They all received a fine. Because Barry was late for training on Friday, he received the harsh punishment. What else happened to Kololli is unclear.
Benjamin Kololli speaks plainly.
Pascal Muller/freshfocus
«We screwed up»
But now things are getting light. The FCB professional opened up to the “Basler Zeitung”. The 32-year-old said: “After the defeat against Lausanne, we had a conversation with sporting director Daniel Stucki.” The atmosphere was tense, partly because of the game, and partly because of the fine. “There were comments I made that Daniel Stucki interpreted differently than I had intended.”
Kololli cited the fact that German is not his native language as the reason for this. “When I was banned, I was surprised – and knew that I had to try to talk to him again. That took place right after the Lugano game, and it was a great exchange,” said Kolloli, who stressed that all misunderstandings have now been permanently cleared up.
The FCB ace regrets the party scandal, as he made clear. “It was stupid of us. We talked about it and we realized that we messed up. The issue is really over for everyone,” he explained in no uncertain terms. FC Basel will play against Yverdon on Sunday at 4.30 p.m. (live with us). Shaqiri will most likely make his debut then.
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