Overview
- The 33-year-old, on loan from Barcelona to Girona, injured his left thigh in Saturday’s 0–1 defeat at Real Oviedo and is scheduled for surgery on Friday.
- In an Instagram post, he said he must pause for several months and vowed to return.
- The extended absence makes a 2026 World Cup call-up unlikely, and he will miss Germany’s March assembly in Herzogenaurach for games against Switzerland and Ghana.
- Head coach Julian Nagelsmann said the team will continue without him and emphasized full support for his recovery.
- The setback, after a patellar tendon rupture and a 2025 back operation, has Germany weighing alternatives, with ex-international Timo Hildebrand naming Oliver Baumann as the current No. 1.