Shortly before the Champions League quarter-final first leg in Barcelona, Dortmund have suffered a major setback: Nico Schlotterbeck has torn his meniscus and will be out for the rest of the season.
Nico Schlotterbeck was suspended for Borussia Dortmund last Saturday’s 4-1 loss in Freiburg. Dortmund will have to get used to this loss. Two days before the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals in Barcelona, BVB announced that the central defender had suffered a torn meniscus and will therefore be out until the end of the season.
“Nico’s absence hits us very hard. He is a very important part of our team and has impressed with consistently good performances this season. We hope he will recover quickly and we will give him our full support on his way back,” said BVB sporting director Sebastian Kehl.
Potential Schlotterbeck representatives are in question
Schlotterbeck, who is the best Borussian field player in the current Bundesliga season, is a permanent fixture in the starting lineup as the left part of the back three. Among other things, he has played the full distance in all twelve Champions League games so far. The defender is likely to remember his last Bundesliga appearance of the current season, his 23rd against Mainz, for some time to come: he took corners for the first time in the Bundesliga and promptly set up two goals.
It is not yet clear who will take the 25-year-old’s place in defense, at least against Barcelona: potential replacements Niklas Süle (rib bruise) and Ramy Bensebaini (hip problems) are uncertain for Wednesday evening.
In addition to the season finale, Schlotterbeck is also likely to miss the Club World Cup (June 15 to July 13) and the Final Four in the Nations League (June 4 to 8). The left-footed defender had recently impressed in the DFB jersey: Schlotterbeck received a grade of 2.0 in both quarterfinals against Italy.