KYLIAN MBAPPE was rushed to hospital after apparently breaking his nose on France’s Euro 2024 debut.
Real Madrid’s new star, 25, was covered in blood at the end of the match as the French beat Austria 1-0.
Mbappe suffered the blow when he missed and hit his head on the shoulder of Austrian defender Kevin Danso.
And that now means he will have to wear a protective mask until the end of the tournament in Germany.
Soon after, game cameras saw him climbing into an ambulance to go to the hospital to check on his injury.
L’Equipe are now stating that a decision will be made tonight on whether he will need nose surgery.
Now he and the whole of France will be worried about their captain’s fitness ahead of the second group game against the Netherlands on Friday.
The injury began what turned out to be a bizarre five-minute spell that followed for Mbappe, who was shown a yellow card.
After receiving medical treatment on the field for a broken nose, he was forced to sit out before being reintroduced by the referee.
But the striker took matters into his own hands and, instead of waiting patiently to be introduced, returned to the field without permission from the referees.
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Speaking to ITV, he said: “To come back and sit on the pitch? He deserved that yellow card. You hate seeing that.”
But fans felt some sympathy for Mbappe’s serious injury.
And after doing so, he immediately fell to the ground and sat down on the grass.
The bizarre situation appeared to be a time-wasting tactic, with France holding a narrow 1-0 lead over the Austrians.
It appeared that France coach Didier Deschamps had told Mbappe to return to the pitch to stop the game again.
And Deschamps himself received a yellow card from the referee for his involvement.
Manchester United and Ireland legend Roy Keane was less than impressed with the antics and criticized Mbappe’s decision to re-enter the field after the match.
Speaking to ITV, he said: “To come back and sit on the pitch? He deserved that yellow card. You hate seeing that.”
Mbappe was finally substituted through injury in the 90th minute, with Olivier Giroud replacing the striker.
Before his departure, Mbappe looked electric on the ball, but had a moment to forget.
The former PSG player was on target when, uncharacteristically, he sent a golden opportunity wide.
But fortunately, this had no impact on the result, as France managed to start their Euros with a victory.
Mbappé will now have to wear a mask to continue playing in the tournament, after Deschamps explained that he likely broke his nose.
Speaking after the win, he said: “Yes, Kylian Mbappe probably broke his nose.
“His nose is not good at all. So we’ll see.
“It’s obviously a negative point of the night, even if it’s just his nose, it’s annoying for us.”
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