The first French goal of the Zidane era arrived with a familiar flash of acceleration, but Kylian Mbappé’s night in Izmit quickly turned uneasy. France’s captain scored against Turkey in the opening round of the Nations League before leaving the field with apparent pain in his left knee.
Mbappé was replaced by Désiré Doué in the 59th minute at the Kocaeli Stadium, shortly after giving France the lead. The Real Madrid forward appeared to hurt himself as he struck the shot that produced his goal in the 54th minute. He grimaced immediately, held his left leg and received treatment from the France medical staff, who examined his knee.
He initially stepped off the pitch, then returned in an attempt to continue. But Mbappé went down again two minutes later and, after briefly trying to test the injury, was unable to remain in the match.
His goal had put France ahead through a move born from pressure high up the pitch. Jules Koundé and Rayan Cherki helped force a Turkish mistake, allowing Michael Olise to take possession and release Mbappé down the left side of the penalty area. The captain drove a low right-footed finish into the far left corner, beyond Turkey goalkeeper Ugurcan Çakır.
The strike was Mbappé’s 67th in 107 appearances for France, and the first scored by Les Bleus since Zinedine Zidane began his reign as coach. Yet the immediate concern after the celebration was not the landmark, but the condition of the captain’s left knee as France’s new chapter began.
