Nico Schlotterbeck has been diagnosed with a medial collateral ligament injury in his left ankle, ruling him out of the remainder of the World Cup and expected to be sidelined for several mo

German international Nico Schlotterbeck suffered a torn medial collateral ligament in his left ankle during the World Cup group stage match against Ivory Coast. Following medical examinations conducted by the German national team in Winston-Salem, USA, it was confirmed that he will miss the remainder of the World Cup and is expected to be sidelined for several months. Despite this, he will remain with the team in the United States for the time being.  

Head coach Julian Nagelsmann said: "We will miss Nico Schlotterbeck a lot during the game. He was an excellent defender with outstanding ability in organizing and distributing the ball from the back. He could have played an important role in this World Cup."  

“We tried our best to calm him down yesterday, and thankfully he is a very positive person and has started to adjust his mindset and look forward. It is also positive for him to stay in the team for the time being, because he can also play a role off the field. Although we have lost him, we still have plenty of personnel in the center-back position, including Jonathan Tah, Antonio Rüdiger, Valdemar Anton and Malik Ghav.”  

Nico Schlotterbeck wrote on social media: "The most important thing right now is the team itself, and they deserve the support of all German fans. I hope everyone can unite and support the team in good times and bad times, and work together to win the World Cup. I need some time to process all of this, so I won't be going to talk about the injury in detail for now. Thank you for your understanding."  

Image source: Internet/German National Team official website