BVB injury issues
September 10, 2014Borussia Dortmund just can't seem to catch a break on the injury front. Jürgen Klopp's troops seem to be returning at snail's pace; battered, bandaged and bruised - but the international break has offered little respite ahead of a congested period.
Marco Reus, having missed the World Cup with an ankle problem, looks to be out for up to four weeks after being injured in the 2-1 win over Scotland. To compound Dortmund's misery even further, Ciro Immobile, one of the summer signings, arriving from Torino, was stretchered off in Italy's 2-0 win in Norway. Henrikh Mkhitaryan returned from international action with Armenia nursing his fitness.
The Italian Football Federation have said, however, that there's nothing to be worried about, with Immobile only sustaining a bruised hip. Reus, meanwhile, aggravated the same ankle that was damaged in a World Cup warm-up match against Armenia, just days before the German side was due to fly to Brazil.
The problems have been a torment throughout Dortmund's preparation for the new season. Last week, Nuri Sahin was forced to go under the knife for knee surgery and the midfield playmaker could be out for a further two months, missing their opening Champions League encounters.
While Ilkay Gundogan has made slow progress in training, and is now training with a ball, he is still a number of weeks from coming back into contention. Sven Bender on the other hand will make his first league start of the season when Dortmund host Freiburg on Saturday.
Also returning injured from their globetrotting exploits on international duty, are Henrikh Mkhitaryan returned to training on Wednesday after he needed some extra recovery time and he was joined on the field by Polish defender Lukasz Piszczek.
Hummels' problems continue
One player who didn't join his team-mates during Wednesday's training session was newly-appointed captain Mats Hummels. The demands of reaching full recovery, while competing in a hectic European and international schedule had been quickly catching up on the 25-year-old central defender.
He missed more than two months with an ankle injury picked up when on international duty before New Year and then dropped out for another two weeks with a knee problem.
As Germany went on to secure their fourth World Cup in the summer, there was no time to put his feet up either. Hummels picked up a thigh injury in the opening win against Portugal and is now suffering some discomfort with a pelvic injury.
Kuba and Schmelzer on the mend
There is mixed news for two other of Dortmund's key players with Jakub Blaszczykowski forced to push his return back a further four weeks, having picked up a thigh injury, according to his official social media accounts.
The 28-year-old missed the second half of last season after tearing his knee ligaments in a match against Augsburg. This further setback means the Polish flanker will need an added time in recovery mode before considering a return to full training.
Dortmund's team balance has been shaken by the Blasczykowski's absence, especially considering his fruitful combination on the right-hand side of the pitch with countryman Piszczek.
It offered a temporary home for Mkhitaryan later in the season where the Armenian did flourish in the final months of the campaign, but Kuba was influential in Dortmund's back-to-back championship victories on that side of the pitch.
The return of Kagawa
Thank goodness that Dortmund have found themselves other options after some shrewd business from the club in adding extra depth to the squad in the summer transfer period.
Adrian Ramos, a 10-million-euro signing from Hertha BSC, will step in for Immobile, if called upon, whilst Dortmund's late spending spree on Manchester United's Shinji Kagawa offers a high-quality option to replace Reus.
Kagawa has moved into contention to be an automatic starter against Freiburg this weekend, before Dortmund's European exploits kick-off with a home match against Arsenal next week. The timing of the problems mounting up for Klopp could hardly be any worse, as the heat of the domestic season is turned up a notch.