Kylian Mbappe suffers injury blow weeks before Newcastle United clash as striker a doubt for AC Milan

Mbappe was an unused substitute for France as they were beaten 2-1 by Germany. After the match, France manager Didier Deschamps confirmed the PSG forward had suffered a knee injury in training that effectively ruled him out of the match.

“If he couldn’t start, he shouldn’t have been brought on either,” Deschamps explained when asked why Mbappe didn’t feature.

The 24-year-old will be assessed further upon his return to PSG, who face a busy schedule over the coming weeks. The Ligue 1 champions face Nice, Borussia Dortmund, Marseille and Clermont Foot within the space of two weeks before they travel to face Newcastle United at St James’ Park on October 4 (8pm kick-off).

It will be Newcastle’s first Champions League home match in over 20 years and PSG will be hoping to have Mbappe back available in time for the trip.

Before that, Newcastle will travel to AC Milan for their Champions League group stage opener at the San Siro on Tuesday evening (5:45pm kick-off). And Milan could be without key player Olivier Giroud after the striker withdrew from the France squad due to an ankle injury picked up in last week’s 2-0 win over Republic of Ireland.

The 36-year-old has been a crucial player for Milan since his arrival from Chelsea in 2021 and already has four goals in three Serie A appearances so far this season.

Reflecting on his injury, Giroud told reporters: “I don’t think it’s too serious.”