DOHA: Tunisia forward Youssef Msakni has been ruled out of the World Cup after agonizingly suffering a cruciate ligament injury while playing his final league game of the season.
In a statement on Sunday, his club, Qatar’s 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 was the team’s top scorer with three goals in the team’s successful final qualifying round for Russia.
Tunisia, known as the “Carthage Lions,” play their first game against England in Volgograd on June 18.
Msakni injured himself playing in a match against Al Sailiya on April 7, which saw his Al Duhail team crowned as Qatari league champions, finishing ahead of second-placed Al Sadd, captained by Barcelona great Xavi Hernandez.
‘Very sad’ Tunisia star Msakni ruled out of World Cup
‘Very sad’ Tunisia star Msakni ruled out of World Cup
US invests in counter-drone tech to protect FIFA World Cup venues
The US will invest $115 million in counter-drone measures to bolster security around the FIFA World Cup and America’s 250th Anniversary celebrations, the Department of Homeland Security said on Monday, the latest sign of governments stepping up drone defenses.
The FIFA World Cup will be a major test of President Donald Trump’s pledge to keep the US secure, with over a million travelers expected to visit for the tournament and billions more watching matches from overseas.
The threat of drone attacks has become a growing concern since the war in Ukraine has demonstrated their lethal capabilities. And recent drone incidents have worried both European and US airports.
“We are entering a new era to defend our air superiority to protect our borders and the interior of the United States,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. Defense companies are developing a range of technologies aimed at countering drones, including tracking software, lasers, microwaves and autonomous machine guns.
The DHS did not specify which technologies it would deploy to World Cup venues. The announcement comes weeks after the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which sits under DHS, said it granted $250 million to 11 states hosting World Cup matches to buy counter-drone technologies.
Last summer, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, called on Trump, a Republican, to bolster federal support for defending against drone attacks.
