World Cup digest: Nkunku ruled out for France

16.11.2022 - 13:35 rte.ie

France have been dealt another injury blow after Christopher Nkunku was ruled out of the World Cup in Qatar.The RB Leipzig forward limped out of training on Tuesday and tests have confirmed he will play no part in the tournament.The World Cup holders were already without Paul Pogba and N'Golo Kante due to injury while Raphael Varane is trying to recover from an issue in time to be fit to play.Reported Chelsea target Nkunku had enjoyed a fine first half of the campaign, scoring 12 goals to sit top of the scoring charts in Germany.Didier Deschamps has called up Eintracht Frankfurt’s Randal Kolo Muani as a replacement and he will join up with the squad in Doha on Thursday.Kolo Muani has scored eight times since moving to Germany this summer and was preferred to Manchester United attacker Anthony Martial.France will be in Group D in Qatar with Australia, Denmark and Tunisia.

They start their campaign against Australia on 22 November at the Al Janoub Stadium.Mane doubtful for 'first games'Senegal forward Sadio Mane will miss the "first games" of the World Cup in Qatar due to injury, a Senegal soccer federation official was quoted as saying by local media.The 30-year-old striker was named last week in Senegal's 26-man squad for the World Cup, which starts on Sunday, despite picking up an injury to his right fibula playing for Bayern Munich in the run-up to the tournament.Senegal coach Aliou Cisse said Mane, whose decisive penalties secured the Africa Cup of Nations title and World Cup qualification for his country this year, did not require surgery but hopes of him lining up against the Netherlands on 21 November appear slim."We will have to rely on playing the first games without Sadio and win without Sadio because we have 25

soccer Sport cup Didier Deschamps Anthony Martial Paul Pogba Raphael Varane Sadio Mane Christopher Nkunku Aliou Cisse Manchester Qatar France Germany Denmark Netherlands Australia Tunisia Doha Senegal

Photo group for Senegal team before the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group A match between Qatar and Senegal at Al Thumama Stadium on 25 November 2022 in Doha, Qatar. (Photo by Ayman Aref/NurPhoto) (Photo by Ayman Aref / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFP)

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Tunisia out of World Cup despite shock win over much-changed France

DOHA: French-born Wahbi Khazri scored the only goal of the game as Tunisia claimed a famous 1-0 win over holders France at the World Cup on Wednesday, but it was not enough for them to reach the last 16. France coach Didier Deschamps, whose team were already through to the knockouts, made nine changes but they were a shadow of their usual selves and Khazri punished them in the 58th minute at Education City Stadium. Tunisia then had to hold on for the victory as an Antoine Griezmann goal in stoppage time was disallowed following a VAR review.

World Cup digest: Minister wants holders to make voices heard on human rights

The French sports minister urged the national football team on Thursday to make themselves heard amid a row over FIFA's threat of sanctions for the OneLove armband.

World Cup host Qatar must conquer nerves before Senegal

DOHA: There’s a good chance the World Cup will go from bad to worse for the Qatar team if the players don’t conquer their nerves when they face African champion Senegal in their second group match. The Qataris are already the first hosts to lose the opening game of a World Cup after they were overwhelmed by their nation’s biggest sporting occasion in a 2-0 Group A defeat to Ecuador on Sunday. That puts them in danger of also being only the second host after South Africa in 2010 to be eliminated in the group stage.