France loses another player just before the World Cup
Nkunku was injured in a situation when he rushed to compete for the ball with midfielder Eduardo Camavinga on the Clairefontaine training ground. The 25-year-old striker hugged the back of his left knee, showed pain, and fell down on the field. He was then helped to get up and then left the field with a member of the coaching staff. Camavinga showed regret and worry as she stood by, hugging her teammate lightly.
"Nkunku will not attend the World Cup. The striker of RB Leipzig had to stop training on the evening of November 15 because of a left knee injury," the French Football Federation (FFF) announced. "Unfortunately, an X-ray in the evening showed it was a stretch mark."
The FFF has submitted Nkunku's medical records to FIFA - a mandatory procedure to request another player to be substituted. Once approved by FIFA, coach Didier Deschamps will announce who will be called up to replace Nkunku.
Nkunku is the second player to leave the French national team before the team leaves for the Middle East for the World Cup. On November 14, midfielder Presnel Kimpembe joined the army at Clairefontaine, but took the initiative to withdraw because he felt that he was not physically fit when he returned from an injury at PSG. Deschamps had to call up Axel Disasi from Monaco instead.
Nkunku has yet to score in eight caps for France after making his debut in March, but has been in fine form at club level for the past year and a half. In the 2021-2022 season, he has 35 goals and 20 assists in 52 matches in all competitions, helping Leipzig to win the German Cup, and personally winning the title of Best Player in the Bundesliga and the German National Cup. This season, Nkunku has scored 17 goals in 23 matches in all competitions.
He is one of seven strikers announced in the list of 25 French players to go to Qatar on November 10. Four days later, Deschamps called up an eighth striker, Marcus Thuram from Monchengladbach, to focus. It is not clear whether this coach will call another striker to replace Nkunku or prioritize more personnel for the midfield, which is very thin with only 6 people of "Les Bleus".
According to The Athletic, since the beginning of October, Chelsea spent $ 60 million under Nkunku's four-year contract release clause to soon close the deal with RB Leipzig, avoiding having to compete to buy the French striker with the contract. other clubs next year. Nkunku also passed a medical with Chelsea in Frankfurt, reached a personal agreement and signed a memorandum of understanding with Chelsea, before the deal was approved in June 2023.
