Isak, Mbappe and Musiala hurt as Nations League window hits Europe's clubs
Liverpool, Real Madrid, Arsenal, Bayern Munich and Manchester United have all had players injured or ruled out on international duty since 24 September.
The Nations League window is only days old, and Europe's biggest clubs are already counting injuries. Liverpool's Alexander Isak has left Sweden's camp with a thigh injury, per Yahoo Sports, and Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe has been ruled out of the rest of France's camp with a knee problem, per Goal.com. Arsenal's Kai Havertz, Bayern Munich's Jamal Musiala, Liverpool's Cody Gakpo and Manchester United's Patrick Dorgu and Bruno Fernandes have also been hurt or ruled out since 24 September.
The timing matters because this break is longer than usual. The Premier League's international break runs from 21 September to 6 October, merging the September and October windows, per ESPN.
Isak leaves Sweden early
Isak played the full 90 minutes and scored in Sweden's 2-1 Nations League win over Romania on 25 September, per Goal.com. He has since left Sweden's camp with a minor thigh injury and will miss Sweden's three remaining Nations League games, against Poland, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Romania again, per Yahoo Sports.
Liverpool's medical staff will assess him, and the club hope he is fit for the Premier League match against Manchester City on 11 October, per ESPN. Isak has scored four goals for Liverpool this season, just behind Erling Haaland in the Premier League scoring race, per the Premier League.
Mbappe scores, then goes off
Mbappe scored the only goal of France's 1-0 Nations League win over Turkey on 25 September, in the 54th minute, and was substituted five minutes later, per Goal.com. Real Madrid's diagnosis was an overstretched posterior capsule in his left knee, per Goal.com. He has been ruled out of the rest of France's camp and will miss the matches against Belgium and Italy, per Goal.com.
Two Germany players lost in one night
Germany's 1-1 draw with the Netherlands on 24 September cost Jurgen Klopp, Germany's head coach per Goal.com, two attacking players. Musiala tore a muscle fibre in his right thigh in the warm-up and withdrew before kickoff, per beIN SPORTS. He is expected to miss three to four weeks for Bayern Munich, per Yahoo Sports.
Havertz then came off after 30 minutes following a challenge from Quinten Timber, per Goal.com. He has a suspected muscle strain in the back of his left thigh and has returned to Arsenal to be assessed, with scan results pending, per Sky Sports. His replacement, Younes Ebnoutalib, made his Germany debut, and Klopp said: "He did brilliantly," per Yahoo Sports.
The Netherlands had their own loss in the same match. Brian Brobbey came off in the 35th minute with a hamstring injury, per beIN SPORTS, and Manchester United's Joshua Zirkzee was called up to replace him in the squad, per ESPN.
Liverpool and Manchester United hit twice
Isak is not Liverpool's only worry. Gakpo was forced off after about 22 minutes of the Netherlands' match with Serbia on 27 September with an ankle injury from a Sasa Lukic tackle, and its severity is unclear pending assessment, per Goal.com.
Manchester United have two players affected. Dorgu was substituted after 30 minutes of Denmark's match with Wales on 27 September with a suspected hamstring injury, per Goal.com. Fernandes was ruled out of Portugal's match against Norway with a fitness issue he carried from Manchester United, and he is targeting a return for the Denmark match, per Yahoo Sports.
The list so far
| Player | Club | Country | Injury | Reported absence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexander Isak | Liverpool | Sweden | Minor thigh injury | Sweden's last three games |
| Kylian Mbappe | Real Madrid | France | Overstretched posterior capsule, left knee | Rest of France camp |
| Jamal Musiala | Bayern Munich | Germany | Torn muscle fibre, right thigh | Three to four weeks |
| Kai Havertz | Arsenal | Germany | Suspected muscle strain, left thigh | Unclear (scans pending) |
| Cody Gakpo | Liverpool | Netherlands | Ankle | Unclear |
| Patrick Dorgu | Manchester United | Denmark | Suspected hamstring | Unclear |
| Bruno Fernandes | Manchester United | Portugal | Fitness issue | Missed Norway; targeting Denmark |
| Brian Brobbey | Not stated | Netherlands | Hamstring | Replaced in squad |
What comes next
The break ends on 6 October, per ESPN, and Liverpool play Manchester City on 11 October, per ESPN. Before then, Liverpool are waiting on assessments of Isak and Gakpo, Arsenal on Havertz's scans, and Bayern Munich on a three-to-four-week absence for Musiala.