Leverkusen sweat on Wirtz injury ahead of crucial second leg tie

Bayer Leverkusen will have to wait to find out if Florian Wirtz will be fit to face Bayern Munich after hobbling off against Werder Bremen.

Bayer Leverkusen face an anxious wait on the fitness of Florian Wirtz after he hobbled off injured in their 2-0 defeat to Werder Bremen on Saturday.

The midfielder, who came on as a halftime substitute, lasted just 14 minutes before he was replaced by Alex Grimaldo, and left the BayArena on crutches at full-time.

Wirtz has the most assists for Leverkusen in the Bundesliga this season (10) and is also their second-highest scorer with nine goals, behind only Patrik Schick (16).

He has been a key player for Leverkusen once again this season, making 39 appearances in all competitions. He has created 82 chances (behind Grimaldo’s 90) but has created the most ‘big’ chances at 21.

Wirtz is now a doubt for their Champions League last-16 second-leg clash against Bayern Munich on Tuesday, a tie in which they are 3-0 down after the return leg.

 Leverkusen managing director Fernando Carro revealed they will have to wait for the results of the examination and see how the pleyer feels.

It is too early to say [if he can play against Bayern]. He added 

Leverkusen suffered their first defeat to Werder Bremen since December 2019, ending a nine-match unbeaten streak against them.

Xabi Alonso’s side had 18 shots in the game, although they only had four on target, compared to Werder’s seven from 11 attempts.

Leverkusen remain second in the Bundesliga table, still eight points behind Bayern, who also suffered a shock defeat to Bochum on Saturday.

Leverkusen have now suffered back-to-back defeats in all competitions, and Alonso was frustrated by their performance.

“[Saturday] was bad. We didn’t play a good game. The result is not good,” Alonso said. “And now, the situation with some players.”

“Two defeats in a row isn’t something we’re used to. We’ll forget about this game as soon as possible. And we’ll now try to believe in what can happen on Tuesday.”

Bayern Leverkusen welcomes Bayern Munich on Tuesday as they hope to overturn a two-goal deficit following a 3-1 loss at the Allianz Arena last week Wednesday.