Douglas Costa hamstring injury may keep him off the field until January

Bayern Munich confirmed on Friday that Douglas Costa is likely to miss the remainder of 2015 as he recovers from his thigh injury suffered against Olympiacos. He joins David Alaba, whose ankle injury will keep him off the field until January.

Costa is set to miss the matches against Borussia Mönchengladbach, Dinamo Zagreb, Darmstadt, and Ingolstadt. The possibility remains that he could be back on the field against Hannover, but an appearance in that match is unlikely.

Guardiola knows the end game is here. "What matters is that they're all 100 percent fit after the winter break." Dominating the first half of the season isn't FC Bayern's target. Being healthy for the "business end" of the season is what's important.

The only silver lining here is that Costa's absence from the field will mean extended playing time for Kingsley Coman. The 19 year old has been tremendous this season, and he's only going to get better with more time.