How Bayern Munich Will Cope with 3-Month Injury Absence of Philipp Lahm

Bayern Munich received something of a boost after the 2014 FIFA World Cup when captain Philipp Lahm opted to bow out at the top and retire from international football, but this international break has still seen him pick up an injury.

According to The Guardian, Lahm suffered a fractured ankle in training with his club and will miss three months of the season as he recovers.

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Big blow for Philipp #Lahm: The captain has suffered a fractured ankle. He needs an operation and will be out for around 3 months!

— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN) November 18, 2014"

With Lahm remaining a key player for Bayern, his absence will be a blow for manager Pep Guardiola, but Bayern have the depth and the versatility in their squad to get to February without having to suffer too much from it.

Lahm

Whether at full-back or in central midfield, Lahm is a vital starter for Guardiola. Hailed as one of the most intelligent players he has ever managed, Lahm uses the ball extremely well—a given at Bayern—and utilises space better than most.

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

His tactical acumen allows Guardiola to tinker with his game plan regardless of his starting position: Lahm can drift infield from full-back, drop deep or play a higher supporting game in midfield and can cover either position with in-game changes from the manager.

One of the most important traits that Lahm has brought over the years to the Bayern team is simply his consistent availability: He always plays well, and he always plays.

"

All in all, Philipp Lahm set to miss at least 10 Bundesliga games for Bayern - more than he's missed through injury in the last 9 years.

— Archie Rhind-Tutt (@archiert1) November 18, 2014"

Being without such a presence, a pillar of the team, Bayern will have to not just adjust to the tactical ramifications of Lahm's absence but also to losing someone of his mental strength and composure on the pitch, no matter the situation in any game.

Defence, Midfield

Guardiola has altered his system a couple of times already this season, operating with both a 4-3-3 and a back-three system. Lahm's role in this latter formation sees him operate in a deep central role, with licence to break forward on occasion depending on who he partners in the middle.

Bayern are struggling in this area due to injuries, with Javi Martinez, Bastian Schweinsteiger and Thiago Alcantara all suffering long-term injuries already. However, Guardiola can still call on Sebastian Rode and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg as well as youngster Gianluca Gaudino—who started the first game of the season—to play alongside Xabi Alonso.

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Lahm's injury comes a day after Hojbjerg said he had to leave Bayern to develop. Poor timing, he'd have a chance competing w/ Rode, Rafinha

— Clark Whitney (@Mr_Bundesliga) November 18, 2014"

In defence, Rafinha would be the obvious choice to play as an orthodox right-back when Bayern's system calls for it on any given matchday, but they have more frequently gone with a three-man defence. The big problem there could be that Jerome Boateng also picked up an injury on international duty, leaving a lot of pressure on Dante and Mehdi Benatia to perform.

Competitions

Even with all these injuries, Bayern can take great heart that their start to the season has been nothing short of magnificent.

Matthias Schrader/Associated Press

They lie top of the Bundesliga, four points clear and unbeaten, after 11 matches. In the Champions League, they are flying clear at the top of Group E with four wins from four and eight points clear of both Roma and CSKA Moscow; not only have they already qualified for the knockout stages, but they have also guaranteed themselves top spot.

Quite bluntly, although the injuries are disappointing, they may not matter too much right now: Nothing is won in these months of the season, and Bayern must now be able to manage themselves through to the new year. At that point they may get three or four of their key players back from injury and be ready to fight with a full squad again in the key weeks and months when trophies are played for.

Lineups can be rotated for the remaining two matches in Europe, resting key players in midfield for big Bundesliga matches.

In the league, although missing Lahm and Co., Bayern showed last year that they were a far superior outfit to their rivals, and the same appears true this term. With an attack almost completely injury-free and boasting some of the finest players in the game, domestically Bayern can almost offset the injuries by focusing entirely on outscoring the opposition.

With only one goal conceded in Europe and just three in 11 games in the league, it's not the way Bayern have gone about things this season. But missing such a key player and a number of other team-mates in the same area of the pitch, it may be their best way of keeping the wins rolling and waiting for time to heal Lahm and his fellow sidelined players over the winter break.

Follow @karlmatchett