Lanig on his way back

The 25-year-old suffered a cruciate ligament tear and damage to his meniscus during the clash with Freiburg earlier this season.

“I’m actually feeling quite okay now,” Lanig told the official Stuttgart website. “I’ve managed to come to terms with the initial shock and now I’m right in the middle of my rehabilitation therapy. I’m beginning to feel that I’m on my way back out of what was a deep hole and things are on the up and up. That’s a good feeling.

“I’m at the VfB Reha-Welt twice a day for treatment – and one of those times is for sport therapy. There I really have to put the brakes on to ensure I don’t do too much too quickly. I have to be very careful that the meniscus, which was also damaged, heals well too. I’m working intensively on my comeback every day.

“Unfortunately I’ve only been able to watch football on television. I hope to be able to watch the next home game live in the stadium but I will have to discuss that with the doctors. I’m really looking forward to be back amongst the team again, and of course I’ll have my fingers crossed [for them] – especially that we can go as far as possible in the Champions League.”