Leverkusen forward Boniface injured on Nigeria duty again

LEVERKUSEN, Germany — Bayer Leverkusen forward Victor Boniface has been ruled out for several games and possibly the rest of the year with a thigh injury sustained on international duty for Nigeria, coach Xabi Alonso said Friday.

“It’s an intensive period and injuries can happen. Victor has a small muscular injury in his thigh. He’ll therefore miss a few games, which is a shame. We’ll see how long it lasts,” the Leverkusen coach said.

Boniface has scored six goals in 10 Bundesliga appearances this season. His absence is a blow for Leverkusen, particularly with fellow forward Amine Adli out until January with a calf injury.

Patrik Schick will likely start against Heidenheim in the Bundesliga on Saturday, when teenagers Artem Stepanov and Francis Onyeka could be called up from the Under-19 team to cover.

It’s the second injury Boniface has sustained while on international duty this year. The 23-year-old forward missed the Africa Cup of Nations with an injury while preparing for the tournament in January.

Nigeria qualified for the next Africa Cup with a 1-1 draw against Benin on Thursday, then finished its qualification campaign with a 2-1 loss at home to Rwanda on Monday.

“He played 15 minutes in the first game for Nigeria,” Alonso said of Boniface. “He felt something after the first 60 minutes in the second game and kept playing. He maybe shouldn’t have done that.”