PARIS – France defender Ibrahima Konate has withdrawn from the squad due to a thigh injury sustained in Liverpool’s 2-1 Premier League loss at Chelsea last weekend, the national team have announced.

Konate was an unused substitute during France’s 3-0 win over Azerbaijan in their World Cup qualifier on Friday and is not fit to feature away to Iceland in Group D this week.

“Injured in the right quadriceps during his last match with Liverpool, Ibrahima Konate has followed a treatment and protocol since his arrival this Monday but will not be able to take his place against Iceland,” the French team posted on X.

“Benjamin Pavard is called in as reinforcement.”

France, who top the group after winning all three of their matches, visit third-placed Iceland on Monday. Liverpool return to action at home to Manchester United on October 19.

The 26-year-old Konate is the second Liverpool centre-back to get injured in the last month after Giovanni Leoni suffered an anterior cruciate ligament tear, ruling him out for a year.

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker also sustained a hamstring injury earlier this month, adding to the English champions’ injury issues in defence.

France will also be without their talismanic captain Kylian Mbappe.

Already suffering from a “small niggle” in his right ankle from playing for Real Madrid, the forward took two knocks during the win over Azerbaijan in Paris, where he opened the scoring but was substituted before the end of the match.

Mbappe “has been released to his club and will not be replaced”, the team added.

His absence adds to the long list of forwards unavailable for October’s World Cup qualifiers, which includes Ousmane Dembele, Desire Doue, Marcus Thuram and Bradley Barcola.

Elsewhere, Argentina’s Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez has also withdrawn from the squad due to inflammation in his right knee, the national team said on Saturday.

The 24-year-old played the majority of the 1-0 win over Venezuela in a friendly in Florida on Friday.

The Argentina team posted on X saying that Fernandez had “synovitis in his right knee.”

Fernandez, who has scored three Premier League goals for seventh-placed Chelsea this season, is the club’s latest midfielder to pick up an injury, with Cole Palmer, Dario Essugo and Andrey Santos also sidelined.

Argentina play Puerto Rico in another friendly on Tuesday, while Chelsea visit Nottingham Forest on October 18. REUTERS