Milan fans are concerned after seeing Olivier Giroud hauled off the pitch just 40 minutes into the World Cup Final with France trailing Argentina 2-0.
The situation was already looking bad for Les Bleus when coach Didier Deschamps made a surprise double substitution, as Lionel Messi’s penalty was followed up by a well-worked team goal from Juventus star Angel Di Maria.
Deschamps took off both Giroud and Ousmane Dembele, introducing Marcus Thuram and Randal Kolo Muani.
There had been major fitness doubts around Giroud in the build-up to the Final, as he was struggling with a knee problem.
It was also evident in the warm-up, as beIN Sport reporters noted he was repeatedly touching his knee.
Nonetheless, the Milan centre-forward had France’s only opportunity of the half with a diving header over the bar.
Seeing him replaced before half-time will ring alarm bells at Milan, especially because of reports that Divock Origi has sustained another fitness issue in training.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is not expected back from knee surgery until late January and was indeed in the stands of the World Cup Final in Qatar to watch his Milan teammates Giroud and Theo Hernandez.
It’s also a blow for the 36-year-old, who had been in the running for the Golden Boot with four goals in five games for France.