France suffered a major injury blow as its centre-back William Saliba was forced off the field during their FIFA World Cup 2026 semifinal against Spain on Tuesday.
In the 29th minute, with France trailing 0-1, things went from bad to worse for the 2018 champion as Saliba went down, asking to be subbed off, pointing to his back.
Maxence Lacroix replaced the Arsenal defender.
Saliba had previously struggled with a back injury in the 2022-23 season, when he sat out for 97 days, missing 15 matches for club and country.
At the 2026 World Cup, Saliba started in six of France’s seven matches so far, and was instrumental for his club, Arsenal, in winning the Premier League title after 22 years.
During the tournament, however, the defender had admitted that he was not operating at full fitness.
“I’ve had some minor niggles for several months. I’ve been gritting my teeth because there was the Champions League and the Premier League. But the coaching staff are handling it very well,” Saliba had told reporters before France’s match against Iraq.
“The World Cup comes round only once every four years, so you’ve got to grit your teeth. I’m not at 100 per cent, but there are plenty of players who aren’t at 100 per cent either — you can’t make excuses.”
Comments
Published on Jul 15, 2026