IMAGO / Vitalii Kliuiev

Bayer Leverkusen Dealt Florian Wirtz Blow Ahead of Bayern Munich in the Champions League

Originally posted on Bayern Munich on SI
By Jordan Merritt | Last updated Mar 10, 2025 11:29 AM ET

Bayern Munich faces domestic rivals Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League Round of 16 second leg on Tuesday.

The Bavarians hold a 3-0 lead heading to the BayArena, with the home team facing a mammoth task to overturn the deficit.

The task has got much tougher for Leverkusen with the news that playmaker Florian Wirtz is out of the second leg. The German club announced Wirtz had suffered a ligament injury in his ankle after a challenge in the game against Werder Bremen.

The 21-year-old is set to be sidelined for several weeks, which means he will also miss Germany's internationals. Bayer Sporting Director Simon Rolfes spoke about Wirtz's loss to the team.

The loss of Florian obviously hits us hard in this phase of the season but we will compensate for him with a strong squad. We know Florian and also know he will come back as soon as possible. Everybody will support him in that. We are assuming he will be fully fit again for the end-of-the-season run-in.Simon Rolfes

It's a massive blow for Leverkusen, who now must look to score at least three times against Die Roten without their star man.

Bayern Munich face Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday, March 11, in the second leg at the BayArena.

This article first appeared on Bayern Munich on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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