World Cup concern for Laurent Koscielny as defender taken off injured against Atletico Madrid
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Updated 03/05/2018 at 22:04 GMT
Arsenal centre-back Laurent Koscielny sparked fears over his World Cup participation when he went off injured against Atletico Madrid with what looked like an Achilles injury.
Arsenal's French defender Laurent Koscielny is carried on a stretcher past Arsenal's French coach Arsene Wenger (C) during the UEFA Europa League semi-final second leg football match between Club Atletico de Madrid and Arsenal FC
Image credit: Getty Images
Koscielny went down in the first-half with no-one around him as he slipped awkwardly on the turf.
Atletico forward Diego Costa immediately called for the physio and the Frenchman looked in considerable pain as he smacked the ground.
Speaking after the game manager Arsene Wenger said that it did not look good for the defender, saying he felt it may have been a "ruptured Achilles".
"Maybe we will have good news but the first signs are not good," the Frenchman added.
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Laurent Koscielny of Arsenal lies injured during the UEFA Europa League Semi Final second leg match between Atletico Madrid and Arsenal FC at Estadio Wanda Metropolitano on May 3, 2018 in Madrid, Spain.
Image credit: Getty Images
Koscielny was stretchered off, with Calum Chambers coming on, and both benches looked concerned as he was carried off the pitch.
The start of the World Cup is just over a month away and Koscielny would have been expected to be part of Didier Deschamps' France squad.
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Arsenal's French defender Laurent Koscielny (bottom) lies on the field during the UEFA Europa League semi-final second leg football match between Club Atletico de Madrid and Arsenal FC.
Image credit: Getty Images
While the severity of the injury is still unclear, Koscielny has been nursing an Achilles injury for some time, with the defender recently admitting that he takes painkillers to get through matches.
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