Canadian star Alphonso Davies left Bayern Munich’s game at Hertha Berlin on Saturday with an apparent hamstring injury.
The 22-year-old Edmonton fullback limped off in the 63rd minute, clutching the back of his right leg.
Davies appeared to be injured when he lunged at Hertha Berlin striker Marco Richter in an effort to win the ball. He finally ended his pursuit, stopping while holding the back of his leg. He looked uncomfortable as he left the pitch accompanied by Bayern coaches.
“According to the doctors, at first glance it is at least a muscle tear. We will have to wait for further tests,” Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann said, speaking through a interpreter, during his post-match press conference.
WATCH | Davies is injured:
Canadian soccer star Alphonso Davies left Bayern’s game against Hertha Berlin in the 64th minute after coming off with a right hamstring injury.
Canada, ranked 41st in the world, begin their World Cup campaign on November 23 against second-placed Belgium in Qatar.
Canadian goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau left the field on a trolley several hours later after injuring his leg while playing for Los Angeles FC against Philadelphia in the MLS Cup final.
Crepeau was a candidate for playing time in the net for Canada in Qatar, but suffered a serious leg injury when he was shown a red card in overtime. Philadelphia’s Cory Burke might have had a clear path to a late goal if Crepeau hadn’t charged him aggressively after a poor back pass from LAFC.
Crepeau remained on the ground for several minutes before being lifted onto a stretcher and cart, but he urged the LAFC crowd from his prone position. Crepeau’s teammates rallied to win their first MLS title without him, leveling the game 3-3 on Gareth Bale’s 128th-minute goal before beating Union 3-0 on penalties.
Crepeau’s replacement John McCarthy gave the only post-match indication of the severity of the 28-year-old Quebec native’s injury.
“I’m devastated for him because it’s a serious injury and it looks like he’s going to miss the World Cup,” said McCarthy, who won the MLS Cup MVP award after making two saves in shooting. “You don’t come out of this game for a band-aid.”
Crepeau started five World Cup qualifiers for Canada. Milan Borjan of Red Star Belgrade started 14 and Dayne St. Clair of Minnesota started one.
Davies has had his share of injuries over the past year.
He suffered a skull bruise last month after taking a kick to the head in a match at Borussia Dortmund while challenging Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham for the ball. Davies missed out on a midweek Champions League win over Czechia’s Viktoria Plzen but returned to action the following weekend.
Alphonso Davies sees a doctor tomorrow. Best case scenario, nothing there. Bad scenario, it’s a stump and it becomes a race against time for the World Cup. In the worst case, the hamstrings are torn and he’s out.
Davies was sidelined in early 2022 after developing symptoms of myocarditis, a mild heart condition, following an episode of COVID-19 contracted during the Bundesliga’s winter break. He returned in early April after not playing since mid-December.
Davies, who can play on the wing or at left-back, has started all but one of Bayern’s 13 Bundesliga games this season and has played in all but one of the team’s Champions League games.
Davies has 12 goals in 35 games for Canada, which will have World Cup tune-up matches against Bahrain on November 11 in Manama and against Japan in Dubai on November 17.
He will be challenged from the start in Group F in Qatar, where the team will face Belgium on November 23, then Croatia on November 27 and Morocco on December 1.
Bayern (8-1-4) beat Hertha Berlin 3-2 to climb to the top of the Bundesliga table.
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