Almost 25 degrees, blue and white sky – these are the conditions under which the Hertha BSC footballers are preparing for the second half of the season in Florida. For Marvin Plattenhardt, the situation is a little different.

The captain of the Berlin Bundesliga team has stayed at home and is currently training with the club’s U23s in the bad Berlin weather. Plattenhardt could not travel to the USA because of his lack of vaccination status. This news has sparked some speculation, including on the left-back’s future status.

Despite all rumors to the contrary, Plattenhardt, 30 years old and under contract with Hertha since 2014, remains captain of the team. However, his contract, which expires in the summer, will not be extended. This has nothing to do with his vaccination status. Fredi Bobic made that clear once again on Thursday at the edge of the training ground in Bradenton.

“Platte behaves world class,” said Hertha’s sports manager. He doesn’t have any bad feelings because he decided against a booster vaccination. Trainer Sandro Schwarz made a similar statement before the flight to the USA.

Mittelstädt and Ullrich should extend at Hertha

According to Bobic, the decision not to extend the contract with the former international was made in the autumn. If Plattenhardt is on the field, he will continue to lead the team as captain. But: “He knows it won’t be easy,” said Bobic.

Plattenhardt’s absence in Florida could be a great opportunity for Maximilian Mittelstädt to come to the fore. But there has also been some speculation about his future in Berlin in recent weeks. Mittelstädt, 25, is said to be moving to league rivals Werder Bremen.

But Hertha has not yet given up hope of keeping the homegrown player, whose contract also expires in the summer. His departure is not fixed yet, explained Bobic. One is still in talks, also with Lukas Ullrich.

The 18-year-old from Hertha’s offspring could also change free of charge in the summer and is said to have long since attracted the interest of other Bundesliga clubs. “We definitely want to keep him,” says Bobic, “because we believe in him.”