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France opened their World Cup defense with a commanding win against Australia, but once again left the manager Didier Deschamps with a headache.
After Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kante, Christopher Nkunku, and Karim Benzema got injured before the tournament even started, Bayern defender Lucas Hernandez hurt himself just before the goal was scored by Australia in their first-round clash on Tuesday.
Craig Goodwin scored for Australia in the ninth minute and just before it happened, Lucas Hernandez tripped trying to cover the flank which was one of the key elements of play that made Goodwin a short-term hero for his national team.
Hernandez was holding his right knee in obvious pain and soon after Australia scored, his teammates surrounded him as they knew something serious has happened. At first, it wasn’t noticeable as the focus was on the play that led to Australia’s goal, but as the video emerged of what occurred with Hernandez, it was clear his match is over, and now unfortunately it has been confirmed that he won’t play again at the Qatar tournament.
The injury was diagnosed as a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament that will require surgery and a long time off the field.
“I feel sorry for Lucas. He is one of our most important players, and we are losing a key piece of our team. He is a warrior, and I have no doubt he will recover, and return to the field as soon as possible,” said Deschamps.
An MRI scan was conducted on Hernandez’s injured knee early on Wednesday and it didn’t take long to confirm the bad news.
The 26-year-old has made seven appearances for Bayern Munich this season in the Bundesliga, however, in most of those games, he didn’t start. But, surely, he will be missed by the German champions as well.
Who will replace Lucas Hernandez?
Lucas was replaced in the match against Australia by his brother Theo, who plays for AC Milan, and he seems the obvious choice to continue in his brother’s place for the duration of the tournament.
Deschamps doesn’t have any left-backs remaining in the squad, so he will have to make do with what he does have. There is a possibility that Axel Disasi from AS Monaco could get a chance to prove himself, even though Theo Hernandez is the one who will keep the place for now.
France managed to turn the game against Australia around before half-time after Adrien Rabiot and Olivier Giroud struck. Rabiot was assisted by Theo Hernandez in that situation. In the second half, Kylian Mbappe opened his World Cup account while Giroud scored another goal to get him to 51 for his country, which is the same number as the all-time leader Thierry Henry.
Deschamps will hope that his team can finally rest with all the misfortune that has caught them even before the tournament began.
France will continue their World Cup campaign on Saturday against Denmark who drew 0-0 with Mexico in the first game for both teams. The last matchday will feature France against Mexico, while Denmark will play Australia.
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