Canada’s World Cup campaign was rocked Thursday night when midfielder Ismael Cohn suffered a gruesome injury following a challenge from Qatar’s Asim Madibo.
Ismael Cohn stretches (Image: (Emilee Chinn/Getty Images))
Ismael Cohn gave his first speech since sustaining a gruesome injury during Canada’s World Cup win over Qatar, vowing to be “back soon.” Kone broke his leg when his team won 6-0 following a challenge from Asim Madibo.
The tackle occurred in the 52nd minute of a Group B game in Vancouver, and although Cone was able to get up as he was carried off the field on a stretcher, he will be sidelined long-term. But on Friday afternoon, the 24-year-old took to Instagram to thank his teammates for their support and vow to be back to make more memories.
“Allah has never betrayed me. Not once in all my life. So why doubt Him now? Especially when I know that. He knows and sees everything before it happens. He has a plan and a vision for all of us. Allah has a plan and a vision for all of us. Allah has a plan and a vision for all of us.”
“This battle will test my faith in Him and my character. And to be honest, I am ready for it, because Allah will never give you a test that you cannot overcome, and being tested is the greatest gift from God.”
“Your love and support has been felt. Honestly, thank you so much. You can’t imagine how grateful I am to everyone who has reached out and prayed. Not everyone is as lucky as this, so I thank God for that.”
“To my brothers in Canada, I have transitioned into assistant coach to support you from the sidelines. I love you with all my heart and I wanted you to know that our brotherhood means everything to me.”
“What you guys did yesterday will stay with me forever. I will be back soon and we will continue to make more memories together.”
Madibo was visibly shaken by the sight of Khorne’s distress. Corn was also sent off after a VAR check as the team was reduced to nine players following Homam Ahmed’s red card in the first half.
Players from both groups formed a protective wall around the cone as medical staff rushed to help the Canadian midfielder. And Canadian coach Jesse Marsh admitted after the game that he and his players could hear bones breaking.
He said: “I have not yet spoken to Ismael. He is in the hospital, preparing for surgery. I will meet him after this press conference.”
Ismael Cohn is comforted by Jesse Marsh (Image: Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
“We’ll see exactly what we do to him. His family is accompanying him to the hospital. It happened right in front of the bench. Everyone could hear bones breaking.”
“Everyone’s hearts go out to him and everyone is a little shaken by this experience due to the nature of the injury and the important role Ismael plays in the team.
“You could also see him waving to the crowd and reassuring everyone else of the fact that he was injured. That’s an incredible statement about Ismael as a person, but this is (also) our team.
“For the past two years I have been trying to tell people about the special character of this group, which is highlighted in moments of challenge and moments of glory.
“Today was a game that kind of exemplified all of that. You could see how our team was. When it happened, everyone was devastated, but we had to find a way to stay focused. We knew Ismael wanted us to get the job done.”
Nathan Saliba shows Ismael Cohn’s shirt (Image: Fran Santiago/Getty Images)
Teammate Jonathan David, who scored a hat-trick in the match, questioned the need for Madibo to tackle Cone. “If you can’t get the ball, there’s no point in playing. It just hurts people. If you can’t get the ball, it’s meaningless. It just hurts people.”
And Canadian midfielder Stephen Eustaquio added: “When I saw his leg, I knew something was wrong. And I wanted the medical staff to get there as quickly as possible. They tried to protect their players and we tried to protect our players.”
“I think that’s normal. They still want to go far in this competition, but at the same time it’s a clear red. There’s no argument that he basically broke his leg, for example. They want yellow, but to me it doesn’t make sense.”
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