Gary Lineker has described Lucas Hernandez's World Cup injury blow as a "terrible shame" after the left-back tore his anterior cruciate ligament in France's 4-1 win over Australia.
The 26-year-old fell awkwardly on his right knee and he appeared to be in a lot of pain as he left the surface at the Al Janoub Stadium. Scans have since revealed that Hernandez has ruptured his ACL and now faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
It also means Hernandez will play no further part in France's World Cup campaign as they look to defend their title after winning the 2018 tournament in Russia. He played in every game on route to the final as Les Bleus beat Croatia 4-2 to lift their second World Cup.
Lineker, who was working for the BBC during France's win, took to Twitter after it was confirmed Hernandez has sustained a hefty blow. The former England striker tweeted: "What a terrible shame". This was in response to Fabrizio Romano putting out the news that Hernandez's season is also over, with France's injury issues mounting up.
Karim Benzema, Paul Pogba, N'Golo Kante, Presnel Kimpembe, Mike Maignan and Christopher Nkunku were all ruled out of the competition through injury and Hernandez has now been added to that long list. It gives manager Didier Deschamps some headaches ahead of their second group game against Denmark on Saturday.
However, the France boss decided to focus more on Hernandez's cruel injury in his post-match press conference. Deschamps, who has been Les Bleus' manager since 2017, admitted his team are losing an "important element" of their powerful unit.
Will France win their second successive World Cup? Let us know in the comments below!
He said: "Like the whole group, players and staff, I am extremely sorry for Lucas. We are losing an important element. Lucas is a warrior and I have no doubt that he will do everything possible to return to the game.
"First plan, I know him well. Courage, he will have it, that’s for sure. On behalf of the group, I wish him the best possible recovery."
Hernandez's brother, Theo, reacted to the blow on his Instagram account but focused more on France's win. He posted: "Congratulations team and thanks to the supporters present @equipedefrance. Lots of strength and get well soon my brother."
In the game, Australia took a shock lead through Craig Goodwin's terrific solo effort. But their good work was undone when France struck twice within five minutes through Adrien Rabion and Olivier Giroud. Les Bleus added a third as Giroud grabbed his brace, before Kylian Mbappe scored a fourth and his first of the tournament for France as they started off with a well-earned three points in Qatar.
