On the eve of the 2022 World Cup, defending champion France was dealt another brutal injury blow.
Star striker Karim Benzema will miss the entire tournament due to an injury he sustained after taking a hit to his left quadriceps, the French national team announced Saturday.
RMC Sport first reported the news that Benzema suffered an injury earlier in the day during his first full training session with the squad and had to stop the session early. L’Equipe later reported that he was set to undergo further testing and could be in danger of being ruled out from France’s 2022 opener against Australia—and potentially the World Cup altogether.
With Benzema now officially out for the foreseeable future, France manager Didier Deschamps will have until 24 hours before France’s first match to call up another player.
The Real Madrid star and reigning Ballon d’Or winner had been nursing knee and hamstring injuries that left his availability for the La Liga club limited in recent weeks. However, the injury that affected him in training Saturday is believed to be a new leg ailment.
Benzema is just the latest member of the French national team to come down with an injury ahead of the tournament. The 2018 champs are already without star midfielders N’Golo Kanté and Paul Pogba, along with a host of other key players like Presnel Kimpembe and Christopher Nkunku, with the latter being hurt in a training session just before France begins play in Qatar.
Benzema’s absence could open more playing time for Antoine Griezmann, who, along with Kylian Mbappé and Olivier Giroud, keyed the run to the title in Russia four years ago.
France will begin its title defense an Group D slate against Australia on Tuesday at 2 p.m. ET.
