It looks as if Bayern Munich will be without centreback, Jerome Boateng, for their clash against Arsenal mid-February.

The German giants’ boss, Carlo Ancelotti, recently confirmed that key midfielder, Thiago, who picked up a muscular problem while training in Qatar, should be available for the European clash. However, it appears that Boateng is a different story.

The defender underwent chest surgery in December and was anticipated to miss the next stage of the season following the Bundesliga winter break. However, Kicker understands that he will miss both Champions League clashes against Arsenal with the first taking place in mid-February and the second in March.

Boateng’s only made 12 appearances across all competitions for Bayern so far this season due to injury and I’m sure the Germany international will be gutted to miss even more considering playing Arsenal will be a huge game.

From Arsenal’s point of view, our less physically imposing forwards might have a marginally easier job. However, ultimately, Bayern’s squad it strong enough to deal with the defender being sidelined. They already have been, after all.