On Tuesday night, Barcelona were dealt with a major injury concern as star midfielder Ilkay Gundogan walked off injured during Germany’s friendly against France.
Just 25 minutes into the game, the 32-year-old midfielder endured a hard fall onto the ground and appeared to have hurt his back, following which he walked off the pitch holding his back.
Speaking after the game, interim Germany manager Rudi Voller provided an update on the midfielder, saying (h/t SPORT): “Gundogan has a bruise on his back but nothing is broken.”
Update on Gundogan’s situation
Now, SPORT1’s Kerry Hau has come up with a fresh update on Gundogan’s condition, stating that the Barcelona summer signing has a severe pelvic bruise after the fall he took against France.
More tests will be conducted once he returns to Barcelona, following which a clearer picture of his situation and a possible recovery timeline will emerge.
This comes as a big concern for Barça ahead of a tight fixture schedule which starts with Saturday’s La Liga clash against Real Betis before they play Royal Antwerp in the UEFA Champions League only three days later.
The Blaugrana are already without another key midfielder Pedri in the squad, with the 20-year-old unlikely to return until late October.
As such, Xavi Hernandez & co. will be hoping that the injury is not serious and that Gundogan can make a swift recovery.
Having arrived at Barcelona this past summer on a free transfer, Gundogan has become an important player for Xavi already.
The 32-year-old has started each of the Catalans’ four La Liga matches thus far, even registering two assists in the process.
The manager and the rest of the staff are very happy with how he has settled in and the hope will be that the veteran superstar is not out of action for a long time.
