Borussia Dortmund Hopeful Mats Hummels Will Be Fit to Face Bayern Following Achilles Injury
By Max Cooper
Borussia Dortmund are hopeful that star defender Mats Hummels will recover in time to face title challengers Bayern Munich in midweek, having left the pitch through injury in the 2-0 victory over Wolfsburg on Saturday.
The 31-year-old put in a solid display in the opening 45 minutes, but he had to be substituted at the interval due to an achilles tendon issue - and there were immediate fears that the German defender would miss the crucial clash on Tuesday.
But Dortmund's sporting director Michael Zorc was optimistic over Hummels' chances of returning to the fold, admitting that they 'hope he'll be able to play' in the game which could decide der BVB's title fate, as reported on the club's website.
"He's been having problems with his Achilles tendon for some time but we hope he'll be able to play again on Tuesday," Zorc explained.
Hummels was making his 250th league appearance for the German side, and he will be desperate to feature against his old club, as they aim to end Bayern's monopoly of German football.
The World Cup winner began his career at Bayern, but he moved to the Westfalenstadion in 2009. He then returned to Bayern seven years later, before finally moving back to Dortmund in 2019.
Hummels has become a crucial member of the BVB side this season, and he has recaptured his stellar form of old over the course of the campaign, helping propel Dortmund into title contention.
Der BVB were made to work hard for their 2-0 win on Saturday, securing the victory with goals from Raphael Guerreiro and Achraf Hakimi. The three points temporarily put Lucien Favre's men a solitary point behind the Bavarian giants, but the champions restored their four point advantage with a 5-2 win over Eintracht Frankfurt in the evening kick-off.