Paris Saint-Germain's 4-2 Champions League win over Barcelona on Tuesday night may have come at a season-changing cost, with serious fears that Khvicha Kvaratskhelia ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament after being helped off at the Parc des Princes.
The Georgian winger went down just before the hour mark after a collision with Barcelona full-back Xavi Espart as he tracked back to help his defence. He dropped to the turf clutching his knee, could not put weight on his right foot and had to be heavily supported by medical staff as he left the pitch in the 59th minute.
Initial examinations have alarmed those close to him
The first reports from France are bleak. As L'Equipe reported, extensive tests after the match sparked genuine fears inside the player's camp that he has suffered a ruptured ACL, with the situation described as "very tense".
Foot Mercato, cited in the same reporting, said the initial examinations carried out after the match alarmed those close to Kvaratskhelia. Several people around the Georgian voiced their concern on Tuesday evening, and PSG are waiting for further examinations before saying anything publicly.
That caution matters. There is no final diagnosis and no official PSG medical bulletin yet. An MRI scan is scheduled for Wednesday, and its results will decide the precise nature of the damage, how long he could be sidelined and whether surgery is required.
Enrique and his team-mates knew straight away
Luis Enrique refused to speculate after the final whistle. "I am not the doctor. I am the coach," he said. "The three injuries is the worst part of the game today. We will have to wait for the tests tomorrow. They are three very important players, so it's really bad news, of course, but that's football."
Fabian Ruiz, whose late goal sealed the win, admitted the sight frightened him. "[Kvara's] injury got me scared because the way he fell got me worried," he said. "He couldn't walk out of the pitch on his own. I just hope it's not something serious."
Kvaratskhelia was the third PSG star lost on the night, and the most worrying of the three. Ousmane Dembele had already been forced off in the first half with a hamstring problem, and captain Marquinhos left in the same minute as the Georgian — the full cost is set out in our injury crisis report from the Barcelona game.
So what: a season on the scan results
If the worst fears are confirmed, the consequences are enormous. A ruptured ACL would keep Kvaratskhelia out for several months and, as OneFootball's summary of the reports put it, PSG fear he could be sidelined for the remainder of the season.
That would strip Enrique of the winger who gives this PSG side its chaos: the relentless pressing, the one-v-one threat and the work rate that caused the injury in the first place, as he sprinted back to challenge Espart. PSG have depth — Desire Doue, Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz all decided the Barcelona game after the injuries, as our report on the 4-2 win detailed — but there is no like-for-like replacement for Kvaratskhelia in Europe, let alone in this squad.
The immediate calendar is unforgiving too. PSG host Lyon in a Ligue 1 top-of-the-table game on Sunday, likely without Dembele and Marquinhos as well, and the holders' defence of their European crown suddenly depends on a treatment room as much as a tactics board. Wednesday's MRI is now the most important result of PSG's week.
Beyond the Final Whistle: This is why Tuesday's classic felt bittersweet even in victory. PSG beat the form team in Europe 4-2 and still left the Parc des Princes fearing they have lost their most irreplaceable attacker for the season. Until the MRI speaks, nothing is confirmed — but when L'Equipe uses words like "very tense" and a player cannot walk off on his own, everyone in Paris already knows what they are bracing for.
Do you think PSG can still defend their Champions League crown if Kvaratskhelia is out for the season? Let us know in the comments.
