Ballon d’Or favourite Ousmane Dembele is set to miss six weeks with a hamstring injury, casting a shadow over the club’s title defense.
Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League defense has been dealt a severe setback, with star forwards Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue both sustaining injuries while on international duty with France. The club confirmed the duo will be out for several weeks following their 1-0 victory over Ukraine on Friday.
In a cruel twist of fate, Dembele, the current favourite for the Ballon d’Or, entered the match as a substitute for the injured Doue, only to be forced off himself with just ten minutes remaining after pulling up with a hamstring issue.
The European champions released a medical update outlining the extent of the damage. “Ousmane Dembele has suffered a serious injury to his right hamstring. He is expected to be unavailable for around six weeks,” the statement read. “Desire Doue suffered a strain in his right calf and will be out for around four weeks.”
The timing is a significant blow for manager Luis Enrique. The injuries guarantee both players will miss the opening night of their Champions League title defense at home against Atalanta on September 17th. Most painfully, Dembele is also ruled out of a highly-anticipated return to his former club, Barcelona, on October 1st.
Dembele’s absence is a particular frustration, as his electrifying performances were instrumental in PSG’s Treble-winning season and had cemented him as the frontrunner for football’s top individual prize. His injury opens the door for competitors like Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal.
The projected timeline means Dembele will definitely miss key fixtures against Marseille in Le Classique and the trip to the Camp Nou. His return is likely to be a close call for matches against Lille and Bayer Leverkusen in October. Doue is expected to be fit after the international break in October.
In their absence, an opportunity arises for other attacking talents to step up. Bradley Barcola, who was subject of serious interest from Liverpool and Bayern Munich this summer, and Goncalo Ramos are now in line for increased responsibility as PSG navigates a challenging start to their European campaign.
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