Sven Bender and Marco Reus have pulled out of Germany's squad for World Cup qualifiers against Republic of Ireland and Sweden, the German Football Federation (DFB) said Monday.
The news comes only a day after Bender's twin Lars, the Bayer Leverkusen defensive midfielder, also withdrew with a thigh problem.
Borussia Dortmund defensive midfielder Sven is suffering from a groin strain and needs 10 days rest while his club teammate playmaker Reus has ligament damage in his left foot and is expected to be out for two weeks.
Group C leaders Germany need only beat Ireland in Cologne on Friday or avoid defeat to Sweden in Solna Tuesday next week to secure their plane ticket to Brazil next year.
Source: AFP
