For Vincent Kompany, June 28, 2024 will probably be the first really bitter day at work as Bayern coach. However, defender Hiroki Ito will have to suffer even more, having to leave the team after 21 minutes of the poor 1-1 friendly against Düren and apparently suffering a serious injury.
Sports director Max Eberl personally delivered the bad news, which no one in Munich will be happy about. “The metatarsal is probably broken. He will be out for a long time,” he said. BILD-Reporter Michel Schröer quoted.
If the fears are confirmed, Ito would most likely be out for several months, although the exact time of absence in the case of such an injury cannot be estimated with any certainty.
UPDATE: July 28, 6:50 p.m.
FC Bayern has now officially confirmed Max Eberl’s assessment. In a statement, the record champions announced that Ito had broken his metatarsal. “This was the result of an examination by FC Bayern’s medical department directly after the game,” the club said.
This setback comes at an inopportune time for the Japanese defender. The new signing from VfB Stuttgart only wore the Bayern jersey for the second time ever against Düren. The effects of Ito’s injury will become clear in the coming days.
When asked whether Bayern would react to Ito’s absence on the transfer market, Eberl replied on Sky-Microphone: “First of all, we have a very good and very big squad. Injuries happen. That happened during the transfer window, so the logical question is: will something else happen. We have a plan and we will continue to follow it. We will see how it looks on September 1st.”
It is possible that Bayern will intensify their efforts to transfer Tah. But the planned sale of Matthijs de Ligt could also fall through or be postponed, which in turn would have an impact on further transfer plans.
