Haaland and Hummels fight injuries ahead of Brugge clash
Both the BVB's met important offensive and defensive actors are day-to-day with injuries ahead of a Wednesday UEFA Champions League match against Brugge.
After he left the field injured in the 86th minute of his side's round six 2-0 defeat of Bielefeld, the early word on Mats Hummels is that a thigh muscle is badly strained, but not necessarily torn.
"I didn't feel a sting," the 31-year-old explaining in a post match interview, "I hope I'll win the [healing] race against time by Wednesday."
Any muscle tear would ordinarily be accompanied by an acutely sharp pain. It is therefore likely that the muscle merely seized up, causing cramp-like complications.
With respect to talismanic striker Erling Haaland, who didn't even make the match day bench squad with unspecified knee problems, German footballing magazine Kicker reports that inflammation of the patella tendon compelled trainer Lucien Favre to give the young phenom a full break.
"We tend to forget that [at his age] he's still growing," Favre said of the 20-year-old, "Sometimes it's dangerous for him to play too much."