Hummels plays down injury fears

Bayern Munich defender Mats Hummels has played down fears he could face a lengthy spell on the sidelines after limping from the field during Saturday’s 1-0 win at Hamburg.

The Germany international picked up a knee injury and was in obvious discomfort when replaced by Jerome Boateng eight minutes into the second half at the Volksparkstadion.

But he later insisted an initial examination of the problem suggested it was relatively minor and he remained hopeful of featuring in Bayern’s midweek Champions League clash with Atletico Madrid.

“I took a blow to the knee before the break,” he said.

“I thought it would be better if I tried to run it off, but that was not the case.  

“I hope to be back on Wednesday.”

Bayern boss Carlo Ancelotti will be anxious to have the former Borussia Dortmund man available to face Atletico given that his replacement, Boateng, has only recently returned from injury himself.

Boateng could partner Javi Martinez at the heart of the defence against Diego Simeone’s men should Hummels fail to recover in time, or Ancelotti may opt to deploy Saturday’s goalscorer Joshua Kimmich at centre-back as he did in last weekend’s win over Ingolstadt.