Borussia Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel has revealed that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is a doubt for Wednesday's DFP-Pokal clash with Union Berlin and Marco Reus is still some way off a return.
Tuchel's men welcome the in-form second-tier outfit in the midst of a tough run of fixtures - Dortmund have won only one of their last five matches across all competitions with fierce rivals Schalke and then Sporting CP to come in the next eight days.
"[Christian] Pulisic, [Ousmane] Dembele and Aubameyang haven't trained today," Tuchel told a media conference. "Pulisic and Dembele are both ill and Aubameyang has a swelling in the calf muscles.
"And it will take several weeks, at least, for Marco Reus to return.
"But [Nuri] Sahin is fit again and Sokratis [Papastathopoulos] will be able to play."
With Dortmund struggling so badly with injuries, Tuchel is finding himself left with little option but to play younger players, admitting they are being given a "crash course" introduction to the rigours of the Bundesliga and Champions League.
"There is no time to ease young players into it," he added. "It's a crash course for them now.
"Our young players have earned our full support, but it will be a difficult game for us against Union.
"It's our ambition to win the match. We want to get our fans behind us with the way we play.
"Generally, there is always a special atmosphere at our home matches. But we expect Union Berlin to bring a lot of fans. Hopefully they won't crash the party."
