Baumgartlinger faces another layoff after 2nd knee surgery

LEVERKUSEN, Germany (AP) — Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Julian Baumgartlinger is set to miss at least three months after undergoing another knee operation, the German club said Tuesday.

The 33-year-old Austria international had surgery on Monday and could return in January following the Bundesliga’s winter break, the team said.

Baumgartlinger was a regular for Leverkusen and captain of Austria before he injured a cruciate ligament in his left knee in January and spent four months on the sidelines.

He recovered to make Austria's squad for the European Championship but only made one brief substitute appearance at the tournament. He came off the bench in all three of Leverkusen's games so far this season.

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