Distressing scenes unfolded at the World Cup on Thursday night as Canada midfielder Ismael Kone was stretchered off with what appeared to be a broken leg, casting a shadow over his side's 6-0 thrashing of Qatar.
The 24-year-old clutched his left leg in agony after a 55th-minute challenge by Qatar's Assim Madibo, who was initially shown a yellow card before it was upgraded to a red. As Kone received oxygen on the pitch, Canada's assistant manager told the fourth official: "His leg's hanging off. His leg is broken. His leg is broken, man."
“Canada midfielder Ismael Kone suffered a broken leg in a 6-0 World Cup win over Qatar after a horror tackle.”
Tensions flared as Kone's teammates reacted angrily to the Qatar players, while Madibo himself appeared devastated, head in hands. Kone managed to sit up on the stretcher and waved to fans as he was carried along the sidelines, receiving comfort from manager Jesse Marsch.
"It's a horrible situation to be in," said Dion Dublin on BBC Radio 5 Live. "We haven't seen a replay and I'm not sure I want to. He was putting his thumbs up to his fans, he is conscious, he's saying thanks for the support to them."
Nathan Saliba replaced Kone and, within minutes of entering the field, produced an exquisite free-kick to add to Canada's already commanding 3-0 lead. He then paid tribute to his teammate by holding aloft a shirt bearing Kone's name and number.
Canada continued to exploit Qatar's numerical disadvantage after Homam Ahmed had been sent off in the first half. Mohammed Manai scored an own-goal in the 75th minute before Jonathan David completed his hat-trick with Canada's sixth goal in stoppage time. Cyle Larin had opened the scoring earlier.
While there was plenty of jubilation for Canada's victory, thoughts remained with Kone. "A gruesome injury, but not intentional. Praying for a speedy recovery," said one fan. Another added: "Wishing Isma all the best, get well soon and come back stronger big guy."