Canada registered their first ever win in the FIFA World Cup on Thursday. However, it was overshadowed when midfielder Ismael Kone suffered a broken leg after a tackle.
That left his teammates and coach Jesse Marsch shaken, as it was a significant injury. It was a night of celebration, but the moment turned into devastation. Kone, the 24-year-old, was taken off on a stretcher at BC Place after Qatar’s Assim Madibo caught him from behind in the 54th minute. Coach Marsch said that the sound of the impact was heard from the sidelines.
“It happened right in front of the bench. We could all hear it,” said Marsch, who immediately recognised the severity of the injury, having seen Canada’s Tajon Buchanan suffer a broken tibia during a training session at the 2024 Copa America.”
“I knew right away it was similar to when Tajon got hurt in training. Everyone could hear the bones snap”
Kone’s teammates and Canada’s support staff had a strong reaction to the incident. Rightly so. Some players even shoved opponents, and Marsch was heard demanding to know why the player was not given a red card immediately. However, the punishment was later upgraded to a yellow card.
Later, Marsch also said that Madibo came to Canada’s dressing room and apologised to Kone. Marsch appreciated this gesture.
“I don’t fault him for that,” said Marsch. “But I don’t understand a reaction from their entire bench to try to start a fight about it being a red card when a clear foul just happened that broke a player’s leg.”
Kone was immediately taken to a hospital to prepare for surgery. It dealt a significant blow to the Canadian side. Now, they have moved to the top of Group B with four points from two matches. With this win, they are in contention for the knockout stage.
Nathan Saliba substituted Kone in the game and eventually went on to score later. He celebrated his goal by holding Kone’s no. 8 jersey.
