Kylian Mbappe Injured in Zinedine Zidane's Winning France Debut as Roberto Mancini Suffers Disappointing Italy Return

Kylian Mbappe suffered a knee injury shortly after scoring the decisive goal that secured a victory for Zinedine Zidane in his first match in charge of France. Taking over at the Kocaeli Stadium, Zidane watched his team defeat Turkey 1-0 in their UEFA Nations League Group A1 opener, with Mbappe starting alongside Ousmane Dembele and Michael Olise in a front three.

The Real Madrid forward fired home a low finish in the 55th minute following an assist from Bayern Munich's Olise, marking his 67th international goal for France. However, he immediately grabbed his left knee in pain and was soon replaced by Paris Saint-Germain attacker Desire Doue.

“It’s not great. Unfortunately I think he is going to have to go home. We don’t want to take any risks,” Zidane told French broadcaster TF1. The French Football Federation later confirmed a tendon tear, ruling him out for the remainder of the training camp.

Despite the injury setback, Zidane was pleased with his team's performance. Turkey counterpart Vincenzo Montella praised his side's resilience despite dominating 64 percent of possession for Zidane's team.

Meanwhile, Robert Mancini's second spell as Italy coach began with a frustrating 2-0 defeat against Belgium at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, featuring goals from Mika Godts and Dodi Lukebakio. In Group B4, Alexander Isak continued his strong form by scoring Sweden's opening goal in a 2-1 victory over Romania at the Strawberry Arena, though he experienced an injury scare with a damaged toe after the match.