Youssoufa Moukoko was supposed to bring a different element to Borussia Dortmund’s game at VfB Stuttgart. But he had to leave the pitch early.

Bad news for Borussia Dortmund: striker Youssoufa Moukoko was injured in the DFB Cup round of 16 at VfB Stuttgart and had to leave the pitch after just 25 minutes. He was replaced by Niclas Füllkrug, who Edin Terzic had initially ordered to the bench.

After one of Borussia Dortmund’s few attacks in the first half, Moukoko was suddenly left stranded in the penalty area after Marcel Sabitzer had previously hit the crossbar. It was initially impossible to tell what had happened to Moukoko. The signs pointed to a muscle injury.

Moukoko was actually supposed to give BVB more pace at VfB Stuttgart, as Dortmund wanted to rely on counter-attacks from a compact defense. The striker has much more pace than Füllkrug, who then came on for Moukoko.

Moukoko has had a difficult time at BVB this season and has only featured in a handful of games. He played 45 minutes against Eintracht Frankfurt – his longest spell in the Bundesliga this season. He played 90 minutes against TSG Hoffenheim in the 1:0 win in the last DFB Cup round.

Bitter news for BVB: another striker is currently having major problems. Sebastién Haller is not even in Borussia Dortmund’s squad for the DFB Cup at VfB Stuttgart because he is suffering from knee problems. He was absent against Borussia Mönchengladbach due to illness. In addition, he has only ever been in the squad in recent matches – but has never featured. He doesn’t seem to be fully fit.

If Moukoko is now also out for the weeks until the end of the year, BVB will only have one fit striker at their disposal in the shape of Füllkrug. However, Edin Terzic’s team still have four competitive matches to play before Christmas – three of them in the Bundesliga