Mario Gotze ruled out for the rest of 2017

Dortmund, November 28: Borussia Dortmund suffer a big blow to their current campaign as star midfielder Mario Gotze has been ruled out for the rest of 2017 with an ankle injury.

The Germany midfielder scored Dortmund's third goal against Schalke on Saturday (November 25), however, had to be subbed off in the second half due to injury before the guests eventually secured a sensational 4-4 draw at the Signal Iduna Park.

The 25-year-old allegedly suffered a partial ligament tear in his right ankle when he was fouled by Schalke's Daniel Caligiuri and now the club have now confirmed the news that the midfielder will not play again until the new year after a scan revealed the extent of the injury.

Confirming the news on their official Twitter account, Dortmund wrote: "That's bitter! Mario Gotze is set for a six-week spell on the sidelines with a partial ligament tear in his right ankle. Get well soon, Mario!"

Gotze, who was the man of the match against Argentina in the 2014 World Cup final has been battling with injuries since the last couple of years.

Last year, the young player endured calf, knee and adductor issues in August and December, and later also missed the second part of last season with a metabolic illness.

However, he made a comeback to the squad this season fully healed and since his return to the squad, the 25-year-old kept his form and made 15 appearances this season, scoring one and assisting twice.

But to his bad luck, the German midfielder will now miss at least six matches because of the injury and will also be unavailable in their Champions League encounter against Real Madrid as well as the crucial match against rivals Bayern Munich in DFB Pokal.

Dortmund at one stage were at the top of the Bundesliga, but have suffered a sudden dip in their campaign as the Signal Iduna Park side is yet to win a match since late September. They are currently fifth in the Bundesliga and will return to action against Bayer Leverkusen on 2 December.