Borussia Dortmund and the German national team were dealt a blow as defender Marcel Schmelzer has gone down with a hamstring tear in training Friday.
It’s a second leg injury for Schmelzer in less than a week, as he missed the midweek DFB-Pokal tie with 1860 Munich due to a calf strain.
This one is obviously more serious, and BVB doctor Markus Braun believes he will be back in three weeks time, hinting that the tear is not as bad as it could be.
21-year-old Erik Durm has filled in for Schmelzer at left-back both in the Munich match and their demolition of Freiburg Saturday.
Schmelzer will most certainly miss the World Cup qualifiers for Germany coming up against Republic of Ireland and Sweden in Group C play. Germany hasn’t technically clinched a berth, but any points in those two matches would do the trick.