Hertha players go head to head and a playoff final

Vladimír Darida and the Czech Republic go up against Niklas Stark’s Germany, while Peter Pekarík will fight for EURO qualification with Slovakia.

The effects of last season’s interruption due to the coronavirus outbreak are still being felt. After seven matchdays, the Bundesliga is already entering its third international break, and many Hertha players are joining up with their national teams. “I hope the boys take the self-confidence with them and that it gives us the boost we need because we will be up against a very strong opponent,” said head coach Bruno Labbadia as he looked ahead to the Bundesliga game against Borussia Dortmund on 21st November (20:30 CET). Before Hertha meet the third-placed team, the focus is on the UEFA Nations League or qualification for the European Championship or World Cup for some members of the squad, with two players in with a chance of making their debuts. hertha.bsc has rounded up the international action.

Playoff final and blue-white duel

Peter Pekarík and Slovakia can book their place at the upcoming European Championships as they travel to Northern Ireland for the playoff final. After that, Slovakia will take on Scotland and Czech Republic in the Nations League. Pekarík will meet a familiar face in Prague when his side takes on Vladimír Darida and the Czech team. Darida will face Israel in the same competition before a friendly match in Leipzig against Germany and Niklas Stark. “I’ve lived in Germany for years so this is an important match for me. Hopefully, I’ll be up against Nik; that would be nice,” said Hertha’s number 6 on a potential clash with his teammate. For Stark and Germany, on the other hand, Nations League matches against Ukraine and Spain are on the schedule in addition to the friendly against Darida’s Czech Republic. "At the end of the day, it's no different to October: for me, it's all about showing the coach that he can count on me. If I play, that's even better," said the defender.

Rune Jarstein and Norway also have three fixtures in a week. After a friendly against Israel, Norway will play away against Romania and Austria. Belgian duo Dedryck Boyata and Dodi Lukébakio will play a friendly against Switzerland before Nations League fixtures against England and Denmark. After being called up in October, Lukébakio is still waiting to make his full debut for the Red Devils. Meanwhile, fellow attacker Krzysztof Piątek and Poland will face Ukraine before Nations League matches against Italy and Netherlands.

World Cup qualification and youth internationals

After suffering an ankle ligament injury, Jhon Córdoba will not join up with the Colombian national team, meaning that only two Hertha players will be in South American international action. Omar Alderete’s Paraguay will face Argentina, while Matheus Cunha will play away friendlies in South Korea and Egypt. Hertha’s number 10 is on stand by for the Brazilian first team. Also on stand by for his national team is Daishawn Redan, who is on call for the Netherlands U21 side, which already features Javairô Dilrosun and Deyovaisio Zeefuik. The Dutch team will play Belarus and Portugal in their European Championship qualification. Also in action for qualification for the same tournament is Mattéo Guendouzi, who will take on Lichtenstein and Switzerland with France U21. There was also reason to celebrate for U23 goalkeeper Marcel Lotka, who was called up to the Polan U21 squad for the first time. For the German youth internationals, however, there will be no matches this break. In view of the coronavirus measures, the DFB has cancelled all youth international games, with exception of U21.