Flu hits Germany’s camp ahead of France clash

Germany have suffered a blow ahead of their World Cup quarter final clash with France after it was revealed a number of the squad have been hit by illness.

Seven members of Germany’s squad are reported to be suffering from flu, and Coach  Joachim Low confirmed that the players were “slightly ill”.

He attempted to play the issue down, betraying only that most of the affected players had ‘sore throats’.

“It’s not that bad at the moment. I don’t want to over-dramatise it,” he said

But given the number of players it has affected, there are concerns that the issue may be more serious than Mr Mr Low is letting on. 

Mats Hummels and Christoph Kramer are considered to be among those suffering after Hummels missed Germany’s second round tie against Algeria, while Kramer sat out an entire day of training this week. 

Hummels, certainly, was hit by more than a sore throat, with Mr Low admitting that the Dortmund star was bed-ridden for the Algeria match, his condition having worsened the night before.

Thomas Muller is also suspected to be among those affected. His coach admitted that the Bayern forward had shown 'symptoms of the flu' even before Germany’s last game.

As for the reasons for the sudden plague, Mr Low blames the climate in Brazil, and the constant necessity to travel. 

“We’re constantly having to travel between different climate zones,”  the Germany boss complained. 

“It’s understandable that the guys get a bit under the weather, and that it starts to spread.”—