Kai Havertz withdraws from Germany's Nations League squad amid knee problem

Arsenal forward Kai Havertz has dropped out of the squad for Germany's Nations League games against Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Netherlands.

The German soccer federation said Sunday that Havertz withdrew because of a left knee problem. Havertz scored in Arsenal's 3-1 win over Southampton in the Premier League on Saturday and played the full game.

Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann called up Mainz forward Jonathan Burkardt for the games in Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday and in Munich against the Dutch three days later.

Nagelsmann was already without Bayern Munich's Jamal Musiala and West Ham's Niclas Fllkrug with hip and ankle problems, respectively, meaning he will need to reshuffle his attack, with Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz and Stuttgart's Deniz Undav likely to feature.

 

The 24-year-old Burkardt, who scored twice for Mainz at St. Pauli in the Bundesliga on Saturday, is the third new call-up to Nagelsmann's squad after Borussia Mnchengladbach forward Tim Kleindienst and Stuttgart's Jamie Leweling.

Germany will have a new goalkeeper, too. Manuel Neuer retired after the European Championship and his replacement, Barcelona's Marc-Andr ter Stegen, is out with a serious knee injury.

Nagelsmann has already decided the 34-year-old Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann will start against Bosnia-Herzegovina. Alexander Nbel (Stuttgart) and Janis Blaswich (Salzburg) are the other goalkeepers in the squad.