Tom Starke tears right elbow ligament; undergores surgery

Bayern Munich backup goalkeeper Tom Starke will be out for an as yet to be determined amount of time after tearing a ligament in his right elbow on Friday during training. He saw a specialist Friday night and underwent surgery today.The 33-year-old German was looking to see more minutes following Bayern Munich's clinching of the Bundesliga 10 days ago after making only three appearances all season for die Roten.

After a relatively disappointing performance last week in a 3-3 draw with Hoffenheim, Bayern Munich were most likely looking to keep Starke fresh and healthy for the season run-in with the fixture congestion from yet another deep run in the Champions League. With Lukas Raeder sidelined with an injury, Leopold Zingerle got the bench appearance for Bayern Munich in their 1-0 loss to FC Augsburg.

Zingerle,the 19-year-old Bayern Munich II backup keeper, is a bit of an unknown quantity, and we should really hope for the speedy return of Lukas Raeder. While Manuel Neuer is fully capable of playing every match from here on out for the season, goalkeeper fortunes can change at the drop of a hat and having a known quantity in Lukas Raeder as a backup would likely help all of us sleep just a little more soundly.