France dodged a major bullet here.
French superstar Kylian Mbappé was hospitalized in Düsseldorf after he suffered a broken nose in his team’s 1-0 victory over Austria during group action Monday of the European Championship in Germany.
Philippe Diallo, the president of France Football Federation, told ESPN his squad’s medical staff made the determination that the 25-year-old‘s injury will not require him to have surgery after he underwent fresh tests. (RELATED: Coors Light Is Coming Out With The First-Ever Cooling Soccer Jersey, And Holy Cow, Take My Money Now)
The striker — who now plays for Real Madrid in club play — will need to wear a mask, however. Considered questionable for next Friday’s match taking on the Netherlands, per Diallo, Mbappé will need protection for his face after his injury.
Featured in France’s first-half goal, Mbappé‘s head clashed with Austria defender Kevin Danso near the end of the Group D square off at Düsseldorf Arena. Laying on the grass curled up, the French superstar was in clear pain, which triggered Austria goalkeeper Patrick Pentz to call for medical attention. His shirt was covered with blood in what appeared to be from his broken nose.
“He’s got a really bad nose,” said France manager Didier Deschamps, per ESPN. “We’ll have to wait and see, the medical staff are dealing with it. We’ll have to see what’s going to be done and then how long it will take. It’s very bad news for us tonight. Obviously, the French team with or without him, this is not the same thing. I hope he can be there.”
🚨🇫🇷 Kylian Mbappé has just left the hospital after it was confirmed that he broke his nose.
Mbappé will not undergo surgery despite initial indications, waiting to decide how to manage him for upcoming two games. pic.twitter.com/Fhbhft1OAO
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 17, 2024
Consider yourself lucky as hell, France. This could’ve easily been so much worse.
