Bayern Munich has confirmed that left-back Raphael Guerreiro will be absent from Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final second leg against Real Madrid due to injury.
Guerreiro, who started the first leg on the bench but made a significant impact after coming on as a central midfielder at halftime, sustained an ankle injury during Saturday’s match against Stuttgart. Despite his efforts, he had to be substituted off after just 17 minutes and will now miss the crucial clash against Madrid.
“FC Bayern will have to make do without Raphael Guerreiro in the next few matches,” the club statement read. “The Portuguese sustained a ligament and capsule injury in his ankle in Saturday’s Bundesliga match away at Stuttgart, as confirmed by a scan by the FC Bayern medical department. Guerreiro had to be subbed off in the 17th minute against Stuttgart.”
On a positive note, Bayern revealed that Jamal Musiala trained with the team on Sunday despite picking up a knock against Stuttgart. Additionally, center-back Matthijs de Ligt, who missed the last two games due to injury, also participated in training.
The tie between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid is finely poised after a 2-2 draw in the first leg. Despite falling behind to a goal from Vinicius Junior, Bayern rallied to take the lead with goals from Leroy Sane and Harry Kane. However, a late Vinicius penalty secured a draw for Madrid.
Real Madrid has historically performed well in European ties where they did not lose the first leg, while Bayern has faced difficulties when starting with a first-leg draw.
