Lucien Favre's Dortmund has been unable to catch a break on the injury front of late.
Having already lost captain Marco Reus to ongoing fitness issues and center back Dan-Axel Zagadou to a ruptured ligament, Favre has now had to rule out midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud for the rest of the campaign as well.
It's a cruel blow for Dahoud, who had enjoyed his best spell in the side all season since the restart. He had started three consecutive games for the first time this campaign thanks in part to fitness problems for fellow midfielders Emre Can and Axel Witsel.
Dahoud, who for much of the campaign has found himself relegated to fourth- or fifth-string in midfield, was forced off with five minutes to play in the 1-0 defeat against Bayern Munich on Tuesday. In the last three games he has played nearly as many minutes as he had in the rest of the season combined.
Starting just 24 games for Dortmund since arriving in 2017, Dahoud grabbed the opportunity presented to him with both hands. He was one of the side's best performers until suffering the knee injury and was singled out for praise by Favre in the buildup to this weekend's game against Paderborn, for which striker Erling Haaland has also been ruled out due to injury.
Favre pregame presser:
“Mo just needed to build momentum, and he was able to do that over the course of these three games." pic.twitter.com/APufDlohzv— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) May 29, 2020
Dahoud is the latest midfielder to suffer a long-term injury this season for Dortmund. Thomas Delaney proved critical to Favre's side in 2018-19, starting 27 games in the league, but has been held to 12 appearances all season after suffering from a torn ankle ligament and knee problems.
Dortmund, which saw its title hopes dashed after the defeat to first-place Bayern, will look to rebound against bottom side Paderborn on Sunday at noon EST. The game is available to watch on Fox Sports 1.
