Bayer Leverkusen have announced that Florian Wirtz will be unavailable for their Champions League return leg against Bayern Munich after being ruled out for several weeks due to an ankle injury.
Leverkusen missed an opportunity to close the gap on Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich after suffering a 2-0 defeat to Werder Bremen on Saturday, despite Bayern’s 3-2 loss to Bochum. They remain eight points behind the leaders
Wirtz, who has registered nine goals and 10 assists in the Bundesliga this season as well as six goals in the Champions League, was introduced as a half-time substitute in that match but he was forced off shortly after due to an ankle problem.
Leverkusen, trailing 3-0 from the first leg in their all-German Champions League clash, will now have to cope without Wirtz for an unspecified duration.
“Bayer 04 will have to manage without Florian Wirtz,” the club said in a statement on Monday.
“The Germany international suffered a ligament injury in his right ankle in the home game against Werder Bremen on Saturday.
“The 21-year-old midfielder will be out of action for several weeks.”
Wirtz will be absent for Germany’s Nations League quarter-final clash against Italy, with the two sides set to face off over two legs on March 20 and March 23.
The German attacking-midfielder is unlikely to recover in time for April 1, when DFB-Pokal holders Leverkusen take on Arminia Bielefeld in the competition’s semi-finals.
“The loss of Florian obviously hits us hard in this phase of the season but we will compensate for him with a strong squad,” said Simon Rolfes, Bayer’s sporting director.
“We know Florian and also know he will come back as soon as possible. We are assuming he will be fully fit again for the run-in.”
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