Dortmund - In 1997, the British alternative music band Chumbawamba released a one-hit wonder which took them near to the top of the charts all over the world.

Injury agony

'Tubthumping' was the name of that iconic anthem, the lyrics of which appear to strike a familiar chord with Borussia Dortmund's Marco Reus. 'I get knocked down, but I get up again; you're never gonna keep me down' repeated four times forms a refrain that Reus has had to recite a little too often for his liking of late.

A tear to the ligaments in his right ankle means Reus will have to wait until at least January before setting foot on a football field again. A third serious injury in less than six months would be enough to damage anybody's morale, but Reus at least appears to be taking it with a pinch of salt, spreading optimism with a Tweet he published on Monday.

It is, unfortunately, a situation the 25-year-old is not new to. It started with a broken toe in November 2011, although he was largely injury free for two years after that 19-day lay-off. A smaller ankle ligament tear led to him missing ten days in October 2013 with a few muscular ailments ruling him out for a fortnight during the tail end of last season.

World Cup dream ended

The worst was to follow in a pre-World Cup friendly against Armenia on 6 June this year, less than 24 hours before he was due to board a plane to Brazil along with the rest of his Germany team-mates. Instead, Reus only got to see the world champions play their way to glory from the unappreciated comfort of his own armchair after in that match in Mainz.

No sooner had he returned from that setback when another followed: torn ligaments in his left ankle and a near month-long break. He returned quicker than expected, but after aggravating the injury earlier this month, Reus was dealt another devastating blow on Saturday by Paderborn's Marvin Bakalorz, whose tackle resulted in a fresh ligament injury to Reus' right ankle.

Heartfelt support

Reus will be supported by his club and colleagues throughout his next phase of rehabilitation, while one of the 25-year-old's Bundesliga rivals has also backed him to emerge from this latest setback stronger than ever. FC Bayern München defender Holger Badstuber knows a thing or two about injuries after all, having spent most of the last two years in the treatment room. "When you spend a long time out, your mind is particularly important; it's the decisive element," he said.

"You've got to remain patient in order to let the injury recover fully. You've always got to believe. All my setbacks have made me stronger," added the Germany international defender. Looking on the positive side, as Reus invariably will do, the timing of the injury could have been worse. He will have the entire winter break to recover, and the next time he hears that Chumbawamba song, he'll hopefully pause it after the first line: 'We'll be singing, when we're winning.'

See what turned out to be a dramatic day for Reus in this video, courtesy of the Bundesliga's official YouTube channel:

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