The Slovenian national team member is not having a great season in his club. Last weekend, Bayer only managed a draw with the second-to-last Ingolstadt (1:1), and is placed 12th in the Bundesliga rankings, which is a poor placing for the team. Now, Kampl has told the Cologne-based tabloid that he had his driver’s license suspended on December 14. The reason: too many penalty points.
Kampl received the points for speeding, for ignoring signs, and for using a cell phone while driving. "It’s true. My driver’s license was suspended. I received too many penalty points," he explained. He has nine penalty points, one more than what the new law allows. The license was taken away from him by the Solingen police.
He’s annoyed because he can’t be independent
Based on German law, he will get his license back on June 14. The 26-year-old, one of the key members of the Slovenian national soccer team, is already looking forward to that date. "I’m annoyed because I now depend on other people. I can’t wait for the suspension to be over, so I can become independent once again," said Kampl in an interview with Köln Express. He added that he is now being driven to Bayer’s practice sessions by his friends and girlfriend.
Many things went wrong from the start
Still, Kampl, who has played 25 games for the Slovenian national team and scored two goals, is worried more about his team’s poor performance than his driver’s license. Bayer had only three wins in the past 15 official games. Its last win in the Bundesliga came more than a month ago, when the team celebrated a 2:0 victory in Darmstadt. Since then, it lost three of the following five games and drew twice.
The last draw came on Saturday in Ingolstadt (1:1), when Kampl entered the game in the 77th minute. "We’re having a crappy season this year. It’s hard to accept that we’ve found ourselves in the midst of a battle for survival among the elite. Many things went wrong from the start. Now, we must ensure that the season ends well. The most important thing is that we don’t despair. Our survival among the elite is at stake," admitted Kamp. This year, he managed only a single goal in 28 games. It happened on November 18, when he scored a goal in a championship match against Leipzig, who ultimately won the game 2:3.
The highlight of this season for Kampl was undoubtedly his excellent performance at Wembley, when Bayer won a match in the group stage of the Champion League against Tottenham (0:1) – thanks to Kampl, who scored in the 65th minute.
Mitja Lisjak; Translated by J. B.
