During the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup, Bayern Munich lost 2-0 to French giants Paris Saint-Germain. The game was most notable, however, for the distressing injury to one of football's brightest stars, Jamal Musiala.
The German collided with Gianluigi Donnarumma and was left on the ground in severe pain. As a result, he will now likely be out for four to five months, having undergone surgery to repair a fractured fibula, while also damaging several ligaments in his leg and foot.
After the incident, Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was immediately critical of Donnarumma for not staying by Musiala while he was on the ground in pain. The German said:
"I went up to him and said, 'Don't you want to go over to our player?' It's only right to go over and wish the guy well. He did that in the end. Fairness is always important ... I would have reacted differently."
However, Donnarumma's agent Enzo Raiola has now explained why the Italian goalkeeper walked away from Musiala.
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"Gigio is a very sensitive person"
As quoted by Italian outlet Gazzetta, Raiola insisted that Donnarumma felt so bad about what had happened he couldn't bear to be close to the incident. He explained:
“He didn’t want to pretend that nothing had happened. Gigio is a very sensitive person.
“He couldn’t bear to stay there and preferred to walk away so the doctors could give Musiala the best care. Once in the locker room, he even turned on his phone. Usually, he turns it off one hour before kick-off to only focus on the match and switches it back on after the game. This time, he messaged me to say he was shaken and that it wasn’t intentional."
Talking of Neuer's criticism, Raiola continued: “Honestly, I understand Neuer. As Courtois said, it’s normal for a player to defend his teammate.
“He’s also right when he says it’s possible to behave differently. We’re all different, and everyone reacts in their own way. Back in December, Gigio almost lost an eye in a clash with a Monaco player. Even Neuer, in 2014, hit Higuain with his fists while coming out during an international match. He later apologised, even though he admitted he was trying to avoid danger for his team, knowing he risked injuring his opponent.”
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Donnarumma Left 'Shaken' After Musiala Injury
Bayern star set to begin rehabilitation this week
Donnarumma also issued a short statement, making clear how apologetic he was. He said:
“I’m shaken by what happened. It was never my intention to hurt Musiala.”
Judging from his reaction during the game, which saw him leave the pitch in tears at half time, it's hard to deny that Donnarumma was anything but remorseful after the incident.
His agent also remarked: “It’s a matter of split seconds. It only takes a moment for a save to turn into a penalty fault. Gigio got on the ball first and couldn’t avoid the collision anymore.
“It’s unfair to think he intended to hurt Musiala, to whom he wishes a speedy recovery and hopes to come back stronger than ever.”
Bayern have now confirmed that Musiala has 'undergone successful surgery', with his first rehabilitation sessions set to begin this week.
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