Overview
- The 18-year-old Bayern winger tore a muscle in his left thigh during Germany’s final training before the friendly with the USA and has flown back to Munich to begin rehabilitation.
- Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann confirmed Karl will miss the World Cup and called up RB Leipzig midfielder Assan Ouedraogo as his replacement.
- Team-mate Deniz Undav said the injury happened on a shot in the last action of the session and that Karl felt immediate, severe pain at the spot.
- Medical estimates differ on Karl’s layoff, with Nagelsmann saying four to six weeks and Bild reporting six to eight weeks, leaving his availability for Bayern’s post-World Cup training uncertain.
- Bayern have identified several other academy players with recent thigh problems and have launched an internal review to probe causes and prevent further muscle injuries among young prospects.