Without Alphonso Davies, Hansi Flick eyes options at left-back for Bayern Munich

When Alphonso Davies went down early in Bayern Munich’s 5-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt, it was clear that the 19-year-old phenom was in severe pain and that his injury was likely going to keep him out of action for quite a while.

As it turns out, Davies is expected to miss anywhere from six-to-eight weeks with ligament damage in his ankle, which has left manager Hansi Flick looking at his options to use at left-back.

In a report by Sport1, Flick commented on a few distinct possibilities for the club, while Davies recuperates:

• Lucas Hernandez: The obvious choice, Hernandez can seamlessly takeover a position he has largely been the starter at for the majority of this season any way. “He plays the position of full-back very well,” Flick said. “He brings us a certain quality, also in the game against the ball. I’m very satisfied. He showed in the final stages of last season where he was and what his strengths are. He’s now showing them right from the start of this season.”
• David Alaba: The former starter at left-back prior to his transition to center-back, Alaba has a long and successful history on the defensive left-flank. Able to bomb up the field offensively and with enough pace to track back effectively, Alaba can easily make the change to left-back whenever needed.

From there, it would see there are a couple of longshots, but Flick did not sound to resistant to using at least one of them:

• Remy Vita: Vita just joined Bayern Munich a few weeks back and is currently playing for Bayern Munich II in 3.Liga. On Sunday, Vita scored his first goal for the club in the U-23 team’s 2-0 victory over Waldhof Mannheim. “We also have a U-23 and we have to see if we have a player with us who can help us out in this position from time to time,” said Flick of Vita.
• Alexander Lungwitz: A 20-year-old Munich native, Lungwitz’s immediate future with Bayern Munich II might be in doubt as Vita is expected to take over that role. It would seem that any move to use Lungwitz would only be as a deep reserve, so that Vita can settle in with Bayern Munich II.

Prior to the injury, Davies was curiously spending quite a bit of time on the bench. Some have theorized that Flick was exercising load management with his young star, but none of that will matter now. The most important thing for Davies, however, is simply to rest, recover, and look forward to 2021 for a return.

At this stage, Bayern Munich has more than enough organizational depth to manage an injury to a key player, especially at left-back.