France captain Kylian Mbappe suffered a broken nose in his team’s victory over Austria at the 2024 European Championship on Monday, which could hamper his ability to represent the national team for the rest of the tournament.
Few details are known at this time about the severity of Mbappe’s injury, but the French medical team confirmed to local broadcaster TF1 that he has indeed broken his nose and that they will have to assess the World Cup winner before making a decision about his injury. availability for the rest of the competition. Official word from the French medical team on Mbappe’s status is expected within the next 24 to 48 hours, but L’Equipe reports this that the player may need to undergo surgery at the University of Dusseldorf to correct the problem.
Mbappe collided with Austrian defender Kevin Danso in the 86th minute and emerged with blood all over his face and shirt. Austrian goalkeeper Patrick Pentz urged the medical team to treat Mbappe soon after the incident, who worked on the player for several minutes. Mbappe then attempted to re-enter the field but fell to the ground immediately afterwards and was subsequently substituted in the 90th minute, with veteran striker Olivier Giroud taking his place.
France manager Didier Deschamps was brief about his post-match assessment of Mbappe’s injury, but admitted it was one of the low points of the evening.
‘Kylian’s nose is not good at all’ he told TF1 shortly after the final whistle. “It’s clearly the downside of this evening.”
Before the injury, Mbappe played a key role in France’s win, forcing Maximilian Wober’s own goal in the 38th minute to ensure they would start the European Championship on a winning note.
Mbappe was expected to play a big role for France as they look to win the European Championship for the first time since 2000, but even if he is cleared to play by the medical team, he could well face another may encounter a problem when it comes to its availability. In his attempt to re-enter the match, Mbappe re-entered the field without the referee’s permission and received a yellow card. Players are suspended for one match at the European Championship if they pick up two yellow cards, and bookings are only cleared after the quarter-finals.
France resumes Euro 2024 on Friday when they face the Netherlands, who top Group D.
