Karim Benzema has been ruled out of the 2022 World Cup on Saturday, Nov. 19, after suffering an injury to his left thigh while training in Doha, confirmed the French federation. He will be out for three weeks. If you want to know more about the possible results in the tournament, check out our World Cup 2022 simulator.
Benzema, who won the 2022 Ballon d’Or, was coming to the tournament after suffering muscle fatigue which made him miss his last game with Real Madrid. France will face Australia for their opening match on Tuesday, they have up until 24 hours prior to name a replacement.
It is not the only injured player for France: Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kanté, Mike Maignan, Presnel Kimpembe and Christopher Nkunkuwill also miss the tournament. However, this was supposed to be Benzema’s triumphant return to the World Cup. Check out when was the last time he played in the tournament.
Benzema’s last participation in a World Cup
Benzema didn’t play in Russia 2018, where France became World Champion, because he was exiled from the team after his attempt to extort money from fellow international Mathieu Valbuena. He was found guilty and was handed a one-year suspended jail term, and a €75,000 fine.
However, Benzema was France's top scorer at the 2014 World Cup (his only participation in the tournament) with three goals in five games. However, after his scandal with Valbuena, he didn’t return to the national team until last year’s European Championship, in which he scored four goals.
"I am extremely sad for Karim, who had made this World Cup a major objective," coach Didier Deschamps said in a statement on Saturday. "Despite this new blow for the French team, I have full confidence in my group. We will do everything to meet the huge challenge that awaits us."
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