William Saliba was a surprise starter for France against Austria (Photo: Getty)
William Saliba trained on his own on Wednesday due to ‘muscular pain’, as France were dealt more injury issues ahead of their next Euro 2024 match.
France narrowly won their Euros opener 1-0 against Austria last Monday but they weren’t celebrating much after captain Kylian Mbappe left the pitch with a broken nose.
While the star forward will not require an operation, he remains a huge doubt for Les Bleus’ next Group D clash against the Netherlands on Friday.
The 25-year-old is set to wear a mask for the rest of the tournament and returned to light training away from the rest of the squad on Wednesday.
But as it turns out Mbappe is not the only major injury concern the tournament favourites are having to deal with, with L’Equipe reporting that first-choice centre-back pairing Saliba and Dayot Upamecano were also absent from group training.
It is said this is down to ‘muscular pain’, though the Arsenal star was able to do some training on his own, as did left-back Theo Hernandez though his absence was not explained.
Saliba was not expected to be in France’s starting XI for the Euros despite being the best defender in the Premier League last season.
Kylian Mbappe out training alone with strapping on his nose in Paderborn.
William Saliba also working separately from the group. pic.twitter.com/8zPUq2bifO
— Jack Rosser (@JackRosser_) June 19, 2024
But in a twist, Deschamps decided to give the 23-year-old the nod over Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate for the Austria match and impressed, though this setback may force the manager into tinkering things for the Netherlands game.
‘I wasn’t really expecting it but when I got called up for the Euros you know you have to be ready for the team,’ the Gunners defender said.
Saliba’s defensive partner Dayot Upamecano also missed training (Photo: Getty)
‘I played the last friendly and kept a clean sheet and now I’ve got more confidence than the previous matches. The national team jersey is heavier than the club jersey, we have a whole country behind us.
‘Competition is intense. We are lucky to have a lot of good centre backs. Usually it’s Upamecano and Konate who start and who set the bar high.
‘So I know that when I start I must not do less than that. We pull each other up, we’re all friends.’
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