Ribéry blow for club and country
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Article summary
Franck Ribéry faces a month on the sidelines, ruling him out of FC Bayern München's meeting with FC Girondins de Bordeaux and making him a major doubt for France's FIFA World Cup play-off.
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Franck Ribéry faces a further month on the sidelines with a knee injury, rendering him unavailable for FC Bayern München's Group A return fixture with FC Girondins de Bordeaux and and unlikely to feature in France's FIFA World Cup play-off against the Republic of Ireland.
Complete recovery
The 26-year-old has been hampered by a persistent problem with his patellar tendon since the start of the campaign and has been out of action for club and country since a goalless draw with 1. FC Köln on 3 October. "We've decided to let Ribéry heal completely, but that could take up to a month," Bayern coach Louis van Gaal said after the 2-1 UEFA Champions League defeat by Bordeaux on Wednesday. Bayern host the French champions on 3 November while France face Ireland in a two-legged tie on 14 and 18 of next month.Ribéry has scored once in 12 appearances for club and country this season, adding the third in Bayern's 5-1 victory over BV Borussia Dortmund on 12 September.
