Following this action, the 88th Division then took part in the opening stages of Plan Blue, the German summer offensive. After only a short advance, the division was again put on the defensive on the northern flank of the 9th Army, where it remained for several months. In January 1943, after the Stalingrad debacle, Russian offensives rippled along the front. The 9th Army front was breached and it was forced to retreat, the 88th Division with it.