Bayer Leverkusen, Victor Boniface is scheduled to return to the German Bundesliga team in April, according to coach Xabi Alonso, following a three-month absence due to injury.
The star forward last appeared and scored for Leverkusen on December 20 in a 4-0 home win over VFL Bochum.
Boniface has performed admirably for Bayer Leverkusen since joining from Belgian club Royale Union SG last summer. The Nigerian striker had a fantastic run, scoring 16 goals and assisting eight times in 23 games in all competitions for Die Werkself.
His performances won him a berth in Jose Peseiro’s roster for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, but he was ruled out and needed to be replaced.
Following his injury, he had a successful surgery, and that has kept him out of action since last December. Since his surgery, Boniface has frequently shared pictures of himself during physiotherapy sessions.
Despite his absence, Die Werkself have been superb. They remain the only team in Europe’s top five leagues that have not lost a game, and have a 10-point advantage over champions Bayern Munich with nine games left.
Bayer Leverkusen play Qarabag in the second leg of the Europa League on Thursday (tomorrow), and ahead of the fixture, Alonso has issued an update on Boniface’s situation.
“His (Boniface) development is very good; the recovery is going in the right direction. That’s very positive,” Alonso said, per Bild.
“We expect Boniface soon, I don’t know, but it won’t be until May, maybe April, and that’s very good for us, having Boniface back. Boni works very well, with great professionalism, twice a day. We need players who have the desire to be back.”
Should Boniface return to the team in April, it will be a huge boost for the league leaders, as they have five games that month, including the DFB-Pokal semi-final versus Düsseldorf. It would be a long run of important games, and they would need their best legs to avoid slip-ups and claim their first-ever Bundesliga title.
