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RB Leipzig has announced that German striker Timo Werner has suffered an ankle ligament injury and hence will be out of the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Werner was set to be included in Germany’s squad for Qatar but his club has reported that he suffered an injury during the recent Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday.
This injury will keep the striker out of contention until the end of the year. The 26-year-old was in good form ever since his return to Leipzig on loan from Chelsea in the summer. The 26-year-old has registered nine goals and four assists in the 2022/23 season so far.
The club made a statement addressing how Werner has torn the syndesmosis ligament in his left ankle and hence will be out till the end of the year. The statement said, “Timo Werner suffered an ankle injury last night in the win over Shakhtar Donetsk. Scans today in Leipzig showed that he has unfortunately torn the syndesmosis ligament in his left ankle and will therefore be out for the rest of 2022.”
With this injury, Germany manager Hansi Flick has a major problem regarding possible forwards for the World Cup. Currently, Flick has players like Kai Havertz, Lukas Nmecha and Karim Adeyemi, plus uncapped duo Youssoufa Moukoko and Niclas Füllkrug as a possible replacement for the number nine position.
In the past, Die Mannschaft never had to look further than Miroslav Klose, who ended his career as the highest goalscorer in World Cup history with a tally of 16 goals in 24 appearances across four editions from 2002 to 2014. He is also Germany’s highest goalscorer with 71 goals in 137 games between 2001 and 2014.
For the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Germany is slotted in Group E with Spain, Costa Rica and Japan. Die Mannschaft will kick off their World Cup campaign against Japan on 23 November at 6:30 P.M. IST at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha.
