Bayern Munich defender ruled out for three weeks

It was a happy return to Bundesliga action for Bayern Munich after a short winter break as they cruised to an 8-1 win against Wolfsburg. The Bavarian club scored six goals in the second half to clinch their biggest Bundesliga win of the season.

Barring a defensive lapse in the first half, Bayern players didn’t put a step wrong on Sunday. There were positive individual performances across the pitch, especially in the final third.

The only blemish for Bayern on Sunday evening was an injury to Josip Stanisic. The Bavarian club confirmed on Monday that Stanisic suffered an ankle injury. According to Bild, Stanisic will be out of action for three weeks.

Stanisic delivered a solid performance against Wolfsburg as he played in the left-back position. The Croatian started the move that led to the first goal. He has formed a good partnership with Luis Diaz on the left back.

Vincent Kompany and Bayern rate Stanisic highly since he can do a solid job in different positions across defense. Moreover, the 25-year-old has the knack of delivering good performances against big teams.

Bayern have enough options to cope with Stanisic’s short injury lay-off

It is disappointing to see Stanisic suffer another injury. He has been troubled by injuries over the last 18 months, ever since returning from a productive loan spell at Bayer Leverkusen. The silver lining in this case is that he will not be out for a long time. If the recovery goes as planned, the Croatian should be back in the matchday squad against Hoffenheim on February 8.

The record Bundesliga champions are well covered in the left-back position. Hiroki Ito, Raphael Guerreiro, and Alphonso Davies can play in this position. Bayern will rotate these three players in the left-back position since they are carefully managing the game time of Ito and Davies after their lengthy injury lay-offs.

Ahead of the clash against FC Koln on Thursday, Bayern will have no players returning from injuries. Joshua Kimmich continues to recover from an ankle injury. The German midfielder could make a return to action next week. Davies and Sacha Boey may return to the squad as they missed the clash against Wolfsburg due to illness. Jamal Musiala continues to train on the pitch, but his return is likely to come at the end of January.

The Bavarian faithful will hope Bayern get the rub of the green when it comes to injuries during the second half of the season to give them the best possible chance of winning the treble.