Florian Wirtz sidelined! Bayer Leverkusen dealt crushing injury blow ahead of Champions League clash with Bayern Munich - with Bundesliga title defence already in tatters

Wirtz was introduced in the second half of Leverkusen's Bundesliga clash on Saturday against Werder Bremen but the midfielder lasted fewer than 15 minutes on the pitch as he damaged the ligament on his right side. The German star will now remain sidelined for several weeks and will miss the second leg of the club's round of 16 tie against Bayern Munich on Tuesday, the club confirmed in an official statement.

The club said: "Bayer 04 will have to manage without Florian Wirtz. The Germany international suffered a ligament injury in his right ankle in the home game against Werder Bremen (0-2) on Saturday. That was the diagnosis from an MRI scan following the game. The 21-year-old midfielder will be out of action for several weeks."

Speaking on Wirtz's injury, Leverkusen managing director Simon Rolfes added: "The loss of Florian obviously hits us hard in this phase of the season but we will compensate for him with a strong squad. We know Florian and also know he will come back as soon as possible. Everybody will support him in that. We are assuming he will be fully fit again for the end of the season run-in."

Xabi Alonso's side are struggling for form, as they have suffered back-to-back defeats across the Champions League and Bundesliga. Last week, they went down 3-0 against Bayern in Europe and then suffered a 2-0 loss at Werder Bremen - their first loss in the league since August. The reigning German champions are on the brink of elimination from the Champions League and are eight points behind the Bavarian giants domestically.

After facing Bayern at home on Tuesday, Leverkusen will be next seen in action in the Bundesliga next Sunday as they take on Stuttgart away from home.