Bayern Munich's Luis Diaz looks set to be sidelined for 4-6 weeks
Bayern Munich have suffered a significant attacking setback following Wednesday evening's 2-2 Champions League draw against Arsenal. Colombian international Luis Díaz has sustained a muscle-bundle tear in his left thigh and is reportedly expected to miss between four and six weeks of competitive action.
The German record champions confirmed the diagnosis on Thursday afternoon following examinations conducted by the club's medical department. Florian Plettenberg reports that Bayern internally anticipate a recovery period of approximately four to six weeks for the 29-year-old winger.
Díaz could consequently miss several important fixtures across three competitions, including Bayern's upcoming Bundesliga encounters against SC Freiburg and Borussia Dortmund,their DFB-Pokal meeting with 1. FC Magdeburg, and the Champions League trip to Atlético Madrid.
Further absences against Mainz 05 and possibly 1. FC Köln could follow, depending on the progress of the Colombian's rehabilitation.
The injury comes at a particularly unfortunate moment for Díaz, who had just deliveredhis most impressive performance of the season during Saturday's emphatic 6-1 Bundesliga victory over RB Leipzig. Díaz injury follows stunning return to form Díaz produced a spectacular hat-trick against Leipzig, scoring three times and contributing an assist during Bayern's convincing victory.
The Colombian had previously endured an inconsistent opening to the Bundesliga campaign, particularly in front of goal. His performance against Leipzig appeared to signal a significant improvement in his finishing.
His four direct goal involvements also demonstrated why Díaz remains such an important component of Vincent Kompany's attacking system. Unfortunately, the winger had already experienced muscular discomfort following the Leipzig encounter.
Kompany subsequently revealed that Bayern had intended to withdraw Díaz during the final 15 minutes against Leipzig but had already exhausted their available substitutions. The Colombian was consequently unable to complete his preparations for Arsenal at full intensity.
The Bayern coach therefore left him out of the starting XI, introducing him from the bench in the 68th minute. Díaz replaced Ismael Saibari but managed only 22 minutes before muscular discomfort forced another substitution.