VfB Stuttgart's Ermedin Demirović set for spell on the sidelines
Ermedin Demirović will be out of action for VfB Stuttgart and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team after suffering a fractured metatarsal in his foot.
The news comes shortly after Stuttgart edged past Heidenheim 1-0 on Matchday 6 to claim their third consecutive Bundelsiga win, taking them up to fourth in the table heading into the October international break.
Demirović, who is Stuttgart's leading goalscorer this season with three goals, played the full 90 minutes without being substituted off. However, it transpired afterwards that the No.9 had been playing with a foot injury sustained midway through the game - a fractured metatarsal, to be precise - as reported by the club's official outlets.
The Bosnian target man was supposed to join up with his national team colleagues on 6 October ahead of facing Cyprus on 9 October, and Malta three days later. However, the striker will now have to remain in the care of his side's medical team.
Demirović joins a steadily-growing injury list at Stuttgart which already includes the likes of Finn Jeltsch, Noah Darvich and fellow striker Deniz Undav.
There had been optimism that Undav, who had suffered a knee injury in Stuttgart's 1-0 victory over Borussia Mönchengladbach on Matchday 2, could make his return and join back up with his strike partner Demirović shortly after the end of the October international break.
Stuttgart's sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth commented on Demirović's injury and outlined his club's strategy in the coming weeks, announcing:
"What will be critical to our success is how we respond to the current situation. Until Deniz and Ermedin return to the team, we’ll have to spread the workload across several shoulders. We’ll need to rely on improvisation and creative solutions - something we’ve successfully managed in the past as well."
What 'creative solutions' head coach Sebastian Hoeneß has come up with will no doubt be revealed when Stuttgart return to action on 18 October as they travel to Wolfsburg on Matchday 7.
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