Borussia Dortmund midfielder Mario Goetze will miss
Saturday's Champions League final against Bayern
Munich due to a thigh muscle injury, the Bundesliga
club said on Wednesday.
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The versatile 20-year-old German international, who
will join Bayern next season, was injured in the
second leg of the semifinal against Real Madrid on
April 30 and had been battling to get fit for the final
at Wembley.
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"That final was my goal, I've struggled hard to be fit
in recent weeks and I am incredibly sorry for not
being able to help the team in this important game,"
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Goetze said on the Dortmund website (www.bvb.de).
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"I will of course travel to London to support the
guys."
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Goetze stunned his colleagues when he announced
at the beginning of the month, after both Borussia
and Bayern had qualified for the Champions League
final, that he was joining Bayern next season.
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That raised the unusual prospect of him playing
against his new club in the final, but the injury has
ended that prospect.
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Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp said last week he
expected Goetze to recover in time but the player
trained with his teammates on Tuesday and
complained of pain.