Erling Haaland had just returned for Dortmund last weekend after a month out. The 21-year-old super striker scored twice against Mainz, in a game Dortmund won 3-1, then played the whole game in BVB’s shock 4-0 defeat to Ajax Amsterdam in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Now the club confirmed Haaland injured his hip flexor and will be out for “a few weeks”.
Dortmund’s coach Marco Rose said Haaland is feeling ‘down’ following the bad news he received from the club’s doctors. Borussia take on Arminia Bielefeld on Saturday afternoon in the German Bundesliga.
“Thomas Meunier will not be able to play, Nico Schulz has a torn muscle fiber and Erling Haaland will not play and will even miss a few weeks with a hip flexor injury,” Rose said in his press conference on Friday.
“Haaland was down of course. He was happy to be back and had felt really good after the Mainz game,” Rose revealed.
The Norwegian striker took to Twitter once it became known that he’ll be again on the sidelines.
“Time to focus on my recovery. I’ll be back stronger,” Haaland wrote.
Time to focus on my recovery. I’ll be back stronger! 🔜💪🻠pic.twitter.com/G5Ez5bohTv
— Erling Haaland (@ErlingHaaland) October 22, 2021
Who will get the goals when Haaland’s not there to do it?
Haaland netted 13 times in all competitions since the start of the campaign, despite missing a whole month to injury.
With Haaland out, Rose is expected to start Dutch attacker Donyell Malen upfront. Haaland’s absence could see 16-year-old Youssoufa Moukoko get more playing time. Moukoko has been a sensation in youth football, scoring 141 goals in 88 games for Dortmund’s junior teams.
Malen is yet to score in the Bundesliga for Dortmund, so the away game in Bielefeld could be the perfect opportunity. He is at +500 to be the first goalscorer in the game. The Dutchman netting anytime during the match is at +160.
Dortmund sit second in the Bundesliga after eight games, with 18 points, just one below the dominant Bayern Munich, none other than the champion for the past nine years. Arminia Bielefeld, BVB’s opponents on Saturday, are second from bottom, with just five points and no match won so far this season. They have the weakest attack in the Bundesliga, netting just four times since the start of the campaign.
