The 2022 World Cup in Qatar has moved into cursed territory tonight after yet another top player is set to miss the winter tournament due to injury, with France star Christopher Nkunku the latest casualty in the run-up to hostilities in just a week’s time.
Nkunku has been one of the most hotly-discussed footballers on the continent over the last few years after his scintillating performances for Bundesliga upstarts RB Leipzig have left many dazzled when it comes to his personal evolution as a player since his departure from Paris Saint-Germain in 2019.
One of the faces of the top flight of German football and an immensely talented player, Nkunku was one name that many hoped would break into the France XI this winter despite the expected reliance on Kylian Mbappé, Karim Benzema, and Antoine Griezmann, but that possibility has taken a massive hit after football insider Fabrizio Romano reported that Nkunku is now set to miss the entire tournament through a knee injury.
🚨 Breaking: Christopher Nkunku will miss the World Cup due to injury in today’s training session. #France #WorldCup2022 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/mpnKUUqUzn
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 15, 2022
Video of the injury via RMC Sport’s feed of the training session that has found its way onto Twitter shows Nkunku coming together with France and Real Madrid starlet Eduardo Camavinga, with the RB Leipzig star immediately going to ground in pain and pounding on the pitch in pain, with French players surrounding the downed forward while some held their heads in disbelief.
Nkunku is now the fourth star for France that will miss the World Cup through injury after Les Bleus were already set for their title defense without 2018 winning duo Paul Pogba and N’Golo Kanté as well as PSG defender Presnel Kimpembe, while the tournament at large has been stripped of a veritable laundry list of big-name players who also will not be fit in time to represent their countries in the pinnacle month the sport has to offer.
Questions now will be asked if whether or not this will throw Nkunku’s move to Chelsea in jeopardy after boss Grahan Potter has made plain his desire for the RBL forward to move to Stamford Bridge in January rather than the summer as the Blues look to get their foundering season back on track in the Premier League.
