Haaland suffers the most serious injury of his career to date
Erling Haaland will likely be out of action until 2022 after suffering what has been described as the worst injury of his career so far.
The Norwegian recently suffered a hip injury that has also impacted his upper thigh, and according to journalist Jan Aage Fjortoft, the recent loss against Ajax in the Champions League might prove to be his final game of the year.
Though Dortmund have not released an official statement on the injury, it is believed to be serious enough to sideline Haaland for up to three months.
Head coach Marco Rose said of the news: “I am not a doctor, so I prefer not to speculate. Erling is injured, it is an injury to the same thigh in which he suffered the previous one, but in a different place."
Haaland has been in sensational form so far this season for Dortmund, scoring 13 goals and recording four assists in 10 starts.
In 2020/21, he scored 41 goals and recorded 10 assists in 40 starts.
He has missed matches for Dortmund before due to injury, including six last season, but the current issue will see him out for the longest period yet, not just with the German side but in his whole career.
Depending on how quickly Haaland recovers, it may actually have an impact on his future at BVB.
If he fails to recover his fitness fully before the summer, it may actually be the case that he remains with the club despite widely being expected to move on to pastures new.
There is no indication that the current injury will see him out longer than January, however.
What games will Haaland likely miss?
Competition | Date | Fixture |
BUN | 30 Oct | Koln (H) |
UCL | 3 Nov | Ajax (H) |
BUN | 6 Nov | RB Leipzig (A) |
BUN | 20 Nov | Stuttgart (H) |
UCL | 24 Nov | Sporting (A) |
BUN | 27 Nov | Wolfsburg (A) |
BUN | 4 Dec | Bayern (H) |
UCL | 7 Dec | Besiktas (H) |
BUN | 11 Dec | Bochum (A) |
BUN | 15 Dec | Greuther Furth (H) |
BUN | 18 Dec | Hertha (A) |
The injury to Haaland will naturally have a detrimental impact on Dortmund's pursuit of glory in the Bundesliga.
Crucially, he will miss the showdown against Bayern Munich at the beginning of December.
Der Klassiker matches can naturally have major consequences in the Bundesliga title race, and Dortmund will be without their talismanic striker.
In Group C of the Champions League, Dortmund are currently second behind Ajax and ahead of Sporting CP and Besiktas after three matches
They are in a good position to qualify, but were recently humbled 4-0 away at Ajax so qualification is not a foregone conclusion, especially now that Haaland will be missing.
He will miss the return fixture versus Ajax as well as Besiktas at home and Sporting away.
The winter break in Germany is between 18 December and 8 January so that will allow for recovery with no games being missed.
Should his recovery go as planned, Haaland will likely be targeting the fixture against Eintracht Frankfurt on 8 January for a return.
He will also miss DFB Pokal fixtures should BVB continue to progress.