Henrikh Mkhitaryan out through winter break with hamstring injury

Borussia Dortmund are in the Bundesliga's relegation zone after Saturday's loss, and the bad news got compounded Sunday. They learned that attacking midfielder Henrik Mkhitaryan has a hamstring injury which will keep him out through the winter break.

BVB have two more games before the Bundesliga shuts up shop for the winter, against top-four rivals Wolfsburg and away to -- uhh, fellow relegation battlers? -- Werder Bremen. Dortmund are also without Marco Reus, who, like Mkhitaryan, is out through the break and hoping to return in late January when the Bundesliga returns. Both have recovery timetables that make a return against Bayer Leverkusen on January 31 a possibility, but not a certainty.