Matthijs de Ligt has suffered damage to the capsule of his knee, Bayern Munich officially announced on Tuesday. The center defender is therefore forced to take a training break and will therefore miss the coming matches der Rekordmeister to miss.
De Ligt suffered the injury during Bayern's training camp in Faro, Portugal. After an MRI scan, the medical department of the German superpower confirmed that it was a knee injury. It is still unclear when De Ligt will be allowed to train with coach Thomas Tuchel's team again.
It is already the third time this season for De Ligt that he has been absent from Bayern due to injuries. The former Ajax player missed several matches in September and October due to knee problems and in November he tore the inner ligament of his knee. As a result, De Ligt had to miss four competition matches, the denouement in the Champions League and the final European Championship qualifiers for the Dutch team.
De Ligt had a starting place last Friday at Bayern, which resumed the Bundesliga with a 3-0 victory over TSG Hoffenheim. The Dutch international played ninety minutes and, together with Dayot Upamecano, formed the heart of the Bayern defense.
De Ligt, who was hired for approximately 70 million euros, had a successful debut season at Bayern. He quickly secured a starting place and ended the season with 43 appearances in all competitions. This season has been a lot more difficult for the man due to various injuries.
Tuchel also does not seem to be a big fan of De Ligt, who may leave Bayern in the summer. According to the German branch of Sky Sports Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is 'very interested' in signing De Ligt. The coach knows the defender from their joint period at Ajax.
The loss of De Ligt is a major setback for Tuchel. The Bayern coach will also have to miss Kim Min-jae for some time, as the defender is participating in the Asian Cup with South Korea. Tuchel could possibly call on the recently recruited Eric Dier at the back against Werder Bremen on Sunday.
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