Kevin Volland, Lars Bender to sit out for Bayer Leverkusen vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach

Bayer Leverkusen will be shorthanded once again as they face a huge opportunity on matchday 27. They face third place Borussia Mönchengladbach, and will do so without Kevin Volland and Lars Bender.

Both starters suffered injuries during the home-and-away matches in what resulted in a Europa League tie with FC Porto. Volland suffered his injury in Germany, while Bender suffered his in Portugal. Volland’s injury was described as a syndesmotic ligament tear, while Bender looks to heal a foot injury.

The one bit of good news for Volland is that he is back in team training and not simply rehabbing. This coming week is a short week for the restarted Bundesliga, so he likely will need a little more time to complete his rehab.

This is a huge road match for Leverkusen. They sit in fifth place with 50 points, and while they’re all but certain to clinch at least a Europa League berth, they are one point out of the fourth Champions League, behind RB Leipzig and two points back of Mönchengladbach. A road win would be a huge difference-maker, and even simply a draw would be of value.