Al Duhail skipper Youssef Msakni receiving the Falcon Shield from Qatar Football Association Vice-President Saoud Al Mohannadi on Saturday. Pictures: Baher Amin / The Peninsula
DOHA: Tunisia forward Youssef Msakni has been ruled out of the World Cup after agonisingly suffering a cruciate ligament injury while playing his final Qatar Stars League game of the season.
In a statement yesterday, Al Duhail said Msakni would not play until October at the earliest after injuring his knee.
“Msakni will be absent for six months, and with this injury he... will be absent from participation with his national team in the World Cup in Russia,” read the statement. The World Cup begins on June 14.
The 27-year-old, who had been instrumental in helping Tunisia qualify for the finals, announced on his Instagram page that he was “very sad” to miss the tournament.
His absence is a major blow to Tunisia’s hopes of progressing from a group also including Belgium, England and Panama.
Msakni injured himself playing in Al Duhail’s final League match against Al Sailiya on Sunday which saw them being crowned in front of the home crowd.
