Kingsley Coman Injury Opens Door for Arjen Robben to Show He's No Back Number

Not much more could have gone wrong for Arjen Robben over the last 12 months or so. The winger, long a hero for Bayern Munich and the Netherlands, lost his status for club and suffered humiliation with country amid a series of injuries that left him powerless to do what he always has and fight for success.

On Wednesday, though, Robben caught a lucky break, albeit at the expense of a teammate. Kingsley Coman, a direct competitor for a starting role on the right wing and most likely the Dutchman's eventual successor at Bayern, sustained an ankle injury during training.

According to the club's official website, the 20-year-old sustained capsular ligament damage and will be sidelined for an indeterminate amount of time but "is definitely out for the early matches of the new season."

As bad as the news is for Bayern, on an individual level, it's good for Robben after his difficult year.

Coman has been on the rise since joining on loan from Juventus as an apparent prospect for the long-term future. It soon became clear that the youngster was ready to contribute in spite of his limited years, and he gave an impressive 12 assists to go along with six goals in his debut campaign at the Allianz Arena.

Coman became a senior France international last autumn and was a regular contributor for Les Bleus in their run to the Euro 2016 final.

For Robben, the narrative of the 2015-16 campaign was much the opposite. Rather than rise into becoming a regular player for his country, the veteran was granted the captaincy of the Netherlands.

Yet, with Robben as the leader, the Dutch failed to qualify for the Euros, finishing fourth in Group A and a mile behind the Czech Republic, Iceland and Turkey. The Dutch took just 13 points from 10 games in their group, which also included Kazakhstan and Latvia. Those two teams who finished below the Netherlands were the only ones the Dutch managed to defeat during qualifiers.

Robben cannot take personal responsibility for his country's failure; to the contrary, he was often injured and helpless to watch from the sidelines as his nation struggled.

Similarly at Bayern, Robben was forced to watch from the sidelines. Except his club had enough depth and quality to win almost every game they played. By season's end, the Bavarians had earned 88 points in the Bundesliga, enough to win the league by a comfortable 10 points. They also won the DFB-Pokal and reached the Champions League semi-finals.

Robben played a muted role for Bayern during the campaign, spending just 1,498 minutes on the pitch, per Transfermarkt, in all competitions. It was a low note in his career, and he only scored seven goals and gave three assists.

In previous years, Bayern rose and fell with Robben. It was every bit his team as much as Franck Ribery's; in fact, the club's run to the 2010 Champions League final was mostly owed to the Dutchman's individual heroics in key moments.

When Bayern finished runners-up in three competitions in 2012, he missed a penalty in the Champions League final and another key spot-kick that ended his side's chances of catching Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga. And when they won the 2013 Champions League final, it was Robben who assisted the opener and scored the late winner.

For years, there was no player whose contributions better correlated with Bayern's success and failure. Yet in 2015-16, the team's general success had little to do with Robben.

Robben now is no longer the main event at Bayern, and for good reason. He's injury-prone and 32 years of age. But now that he's regaining fitness, and with Coman sidelined for the next few weeks, he has a chance to prove himself again and that he's worth relying on for at least one more season.

His contract expires at the end of the campaign, and he'll want to show he's either worth keeping around for a while longer or that he deserves to be trusted at another club.

As it happens, Robben's situation is not unlike Ribery's a year ago. He's the same age the Frenchman was at the beginning of the last campaign, and also coming off many injuries.

Ribery spent much of 2015-16 injured, but in the spring, he came to life and showed glimpses of his former self. His good form helped ensure that despite Douglas Costa's downturn in form after a brilliant autumn campaign, Bayern did not suffer much.

Robben can take heart from Ribery's experiences and put his best foot forward in 2016-17. He no longer is the obvious first choice, time is more on Coman's side; with each passing month, the Frenchman approaches his prime while the Dutchman inches closer to his retirement.

However, with Coman injured and Robben fresh and ready to contribute, the stage is set for Bayern's right-sided virtuoso to show he's still got the magic that made him indispensable to the German giants.

@Mr_Bundesliga