Kylian Mbappe will miss the remainder of the international break after picking up a knee problem while netting France’s sole goal in Zinedine Zidane’s opening match as manager.
The Real Madrid forward grabbed his 67th goal for France from a Michael Olise assist to seal a 1-0 Nations League win in Turkey. But Mbappe was visibly struggling right after the goal and was taken off five minutes later.
Kylian Mbappe dealt knee injury blow
The injury has cut short Mbappe’s time with the national team during this window, leaving France to carry on without their all-time leading scorer.
“Sadly, it doesn’t look good. I think he’ll have to go back,” Zidane told reporters after the match.
“We’re not going to take any risks. He has swelling in the knee. It’s not encouraging.”
France clinches Nations League victory
Even with Mbappe’s early exit, France managed to secure a 1-0 win in Turkey. The forward’s 67th international goal was enough to hand Zidane a winning start in his first game in charge of France.
Turkey went down to 10 men late on when goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir was dismissed for handling the ball outside the penalty area.
Zidane kicks off his France tenure
Zidane, a World Cup winner with France as a player, took over from Didier Deschamps after this summer’s World Cup.
The former Real Madrid boss is now managing a senior team other than Real Madrid for the first time. He had two spells in charge of the Spanish club, from 2016 to 2018 and from 2019 to 2021, claiming three Champions League titles and two La Liga crowns.