MUNICH -- Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann says Canadian soccer star Alphonso Davies is still several weeks away from returning to action.
That prognosis would rule him out of Canada's final three World Cup qualifying matches.
The 21-year-old from Edmonton has been sidelined since early January due to symptoms of myocarditis, a mild heart condition, following a bout of COVID. But he has made progress recently with video this week showing the speedy fullback doing individual workouts at Bayern's training centre.
"We have had a good checkup today as well but it's just slowly getting back into it," Nagelsmann said Friday. "He probably will be back in about three to four weeks, at least that is still our goal. So he will be playing that Champions League game hopefully against Villarreal if everything works as usual."
Bayern is scheduled to meet Spain's Villarreal in the two-legged Champions League quarterfinal on April 6 and 12.
Nagelsmann was speaking ahead of Bayern's Bundesliga match against visiting FC Union Berlin on Saturday.
Canada, which tops the eight-team final round robin in CONCACAF at 7-0-4, is on the verge of qualifying for Qatar 2022. John Herdman's team plays at Costa Rica on March 24 before hosting Jamaica on March 27 in Toronto and finishing off March 30 in Panama.
The illness has meant Davies has not played for Canada since a pair of World Cup qualifying wins in November in Edmonton.
Bayern said Jan. 5 that Davies had joined a lengthy list of players who had tested positive for COVID, adding the speedy fullback was well and self-isolating at home.
Davies was back training a week later, but his return was put on hold with Bayern reporting Jan. 14 that tests showed the Canadian was suffering from signs of myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle. It is a mild, temporary condition in the vast majority of cases, according to experts.
Davies' myocarditis was detected in the followup examination that all players who have had COVID undergo.
Bayern (19-4-3) tops the Bundesliga standings while Union Berlin (10-8-8) stands eighth.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 18, 2021
