Hertha's John Brooks to miss Leverkusen tilt with shin worry

With just three matches left in its Champions League chase, Hertha Berlin will be without American international centre-back John Brooks for its pivotal tilt Saturday against Bayer Leverkusen.

Brooks, 23, is nursing a shin bruise that will see him sidelined for the clash between the Bundesliga's third and fourth-placed sides.

Hertha gaffer Pal Dardai confirmed Brooks' status, saying, "It is planned that John returns to training on Wednesday or Thursday. But for Leverkusen it won't be enough. John is a tall player, who needs decent time on the training pitch."

The shin injury has plagued Brooks for the second half of the season, missing two World Cup qualifiers against Guatemala and Hertha's next two league matches.

Hertha travels to Leverkusen on Saturday, sitting five points adrift of the North Rhine-Westphalian side for a third-place automatic Champions League spot. Leverkusen has won six matches on the trot while Dardai's lot has been mired by a poor run of form, with only a draw to show for its last four league matches.

Making matters worse for the capital side, Mochengladbach is just a point back, with both Mainz and Schalke within striking distance.