Munich, March 30 (IANS) Bayern Munich’s defender Hiroki Ito will be out of action for a lengthy period after sustaining a metatarsal fracture, the Bundesliga club said on Sunday.
Ito has suffered a recurrence of a fracture in his right metatarsal, a scan by the club’s medical team has confirmed. The Japanese international sustained the injury in Saturday’s 3-2 win against FC St. Pauli. Having come on in the 58th minute, he had to leave the field in the 89th.
The club further said that Ito, who moved to Munich from VfB Stuttgart last summer, will be unavailable to Bayern for a lengthy period.
“The news of another serious injury to Hiroki hits us all very hard. He’s only just battled back after months of rehab and will now be out for a long time again – we can barely imagine how he’s feeling. He’ll get all the support he needs from us. He’s a fighter and we look forward to him being back on the pitch. Keep your head up, Hiroki – FC Bayern are on your side,” board member for sport Max Eberl commented on Ito’s injury.
Ito is the latest name on Bayern’s list of injuries, as the Bundesliga leaders are also without Alphonso Davies for a lengthy period after the left-back diagnosed with a torn cruciate ligament in his right knee following his return from international duty with the Canadian national team and underwent surgery earlier this week.
Davies picked up the injury early on in Canada’s 2-1 win over the USA in a Concacaf Nations League third-place play-off last Sunday. It will be a huge cause of concern for the Bavarian outlet after recently signing a contract extension with the Canadian till June 2030.
Alongside Davies, Dayot Upamecano has also been ruled out for the coming weeks. After being diagnosed with loose bodies in his left knee, which means he too will not be available to FC Bayern for several weeks.
“After the injuries to Alphonso Davies and Dayot Upamecano, we’ve now lost a third defender in a short space of time. We will now pool our forces even more to continue pursuing our goals,” Eberl added.
With Manuel Neuer also sidelined with a calf injury, depleted Bayern will take on Inter Milan in the Champions League quarterfinals on April 8.
–IANS
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