World Cup 2022: Karim Benzema out of Qatar 2022 with injury, France announce

France striker Karim Benzema has been forced to pull out of the World Cup in Qatar due to injury, Les Bleus have confirmed in a statement.

This year’s Ballon d’Or winner missed Real Madrid’s last three games ahead of the tournament and reports earlier on Saturday indicated that he had suffered a fresh setback in training for Qatar 2022.

“Karim Benzema has pulled out of the World Cup with a thigh injury,” Les Bleus said in a short statement.

“The whole team shares Karim’s disappointment and wishes him a speedy recovery.”

Karim @Benzema has pulled out of the World Cup with a thigh injury.The whole team shares Karim’s disappointment and wishes him a speedy recovery💙#FiersdetreBleus pic.twitter.com/fclx9pFkGzNovember 19, 2022

France kick off the defence of their trophy against Austria on Tuesday and coach Didier Deschamps will now need to decide on a replacement for the Real Madrid striker.

Denmark and Tunisia are the other two teams in Group C.