France midfielder N’Golo Kante missed the bus to Qatar, having suffered a setback in his rehabilitation from an injury that has restricted him to two league appearances this season.
Kante has been out of action since suffering a hamstring issue in Chelsea’s 2-2 Premier League draw with Tottenham Hotspur on August 14. The 31-year-old did return to training nearly two months later, but ended up re-aggravating the problem.
Kante has always been prone to injuries, having sustained them on five occasions in 2021 and thrice in 2022 including a bout of coronavirus.
He has now been replaced by Real Madrid’s defensive midfielder Aurelien Djani Tchouameni, who has been impressive thus far, in coach Didier Deschamps’ playing XI.
France is also missing its other star midfielder in Paul Pogba who has been suffering from a thigh muscle strain. The defending champion also lost forwards Karim Benzema and Christopher Nkunku to injuries.
Despite the long injury list, France has done well thus far in the World Cup, becoming the first team to make the Round of 16 with a game to spare.
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