United News of Bangladesh

On a balmy evening at the Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta, the stage was set for a titanic clash between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, held on July 5, 2025. The air buzzed with anticipation as fans filled the stands, their chants and songs creating an electric atmosphere. Little did they know that the match would be remembered not only for its footballing drama but also for the heartbreaking injury of Jamal Musiala, which would resonate across the football world. A Star Falls: Musiala’s Devastating Injury As the first half neared its conclusion, with the score still locked at 0-0, a moment of horror unfolded. Bayern’s prodigy, Jamal Musiala, known for his electrifying pace and deft touch, found himself in a one-on-one situation with PSG’s towering goalkeeper, Gianluigi Donnarumma. In a courageous attempt to slot the ball past the Italian, Musiala collided heavily with Donnarumma, and in an instant, the stadium fell silent. Musiala lay on the ground, clutching his ankle, his face contorted in agony. The severity of the injury—suspected to be a broken ankle—was immediately apparent. Players from both teams gathered around, their expressions a mix of shock and concern. Bayern’s captain, Manuel Neuer, stood nearby, his face etched with worry for his young teammate. Even PSG’s players, fierce competitors moments earlier, showed visible empathy, with Donnarumma himself checking on Musiala’s condition. Read more: Kyle Walker ends 8-year spell with Man City by moving to Burnley The medical team rushed onto the field, and after several tense minutes, Musiala was carefully placed on a stretcher and carried off, the crowd rising to applaud the 22-year-old star. The applause was a mix of support and sorrow, a collective acknowledgement of Musiala’s brilliance and the uncertainty now surrounding his future. The injury’s graphic nature led stadium officials to withhold the replay from the big screens, sparing fans from reliving the distressing moment. Musiala, who had scored three goals in the Club World Cup and 20 across all competitions this season, is more than just a player for Bayern. Born in Stuttgart to a Nigerian father and German mother, he moved to England at a young age, honing his skills in Chelsea’s academy before returning to Germany. His versatility, technical skill, and composure have drawn comparisons to football’s greats, making his injury all the more devastating for Bayern and their supporters.

Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is set to return for Bayern Munich for the first time in more than a month in Saturday's Bundesliga game against Borussia Moenchengladbach but Jamal Musiala will miss out. The 38-year-old Neuer missed Bayern's last four games of 2024 with a broken rib and wasn't in the squad for a friendly against Salzburg on Monday, but now looks fully fit again, coach Vincent Kompany said Friday. Neuer's return for Bayern's first league game of 2025 is all the more important after backup Daniel Peretz injured a kidney in a training incident on Wednesday. He's expected to miss a few weeks, Kompany said. West Ham appoints former Chelsea manager Graham Potter as new head coach Kompany confirmed Musiala, who hadn't been training because of illness, won't be available Saturday for the German league leader. Among several other absences are midfielder João Palhinha, who hasn't played since early November with an adductor muscle tear, and defender Dayot Upamecano, who's serving a one-game Bundesliga suspension for five yellow cards.

Not even Kylian Mbappé's substitute appearance could end Paris Saint-Germain's slump, as it lost 1-0 at home to Bayern Munich on Tuesday in the first leg of their round-of-16 Champions League clash. A third straight loss made it five defeats in 11 games this year for PSG coach Christophe Galtier's team. Bayern winger Kingsley Coman volleyed home inside the penalty area from Alphonso Davies’ left-wing cross in the 53rd minute. The Paris-raised Coman, who PSG sold to Juventus when he was 18, held his hands up to show he wasn't celebrating scoring against his former club — again. “It’s the city where I was born and raised so it was difficult to celebrate here,” Coman said. “Given our performance we could have done more, but at the end it was a bit difficult so we’re satisfied with the win.” When Bayern won the last of its six Champions League titles in 2020, it beat PSG 1-0 with Coman heading home the winner. The World Cup superstar Mbappé made an unexpectedly quick recovery from injury and had two would-be goals disallowed for offside after coming on in the second half. “It was difficult, unpredictable. I wasn’t supposed to play but I wanted to play and help my mates. We did everything, we worked night and day to get me some game time,” Mbappé said. “I wanted to (start the game). But sometimes you have to be satisfied with what you can do, and that’s all I could do." The return leg is on March 8. PSG was eliminated by Real Madrid in the last 16 last season and may need Mbappé at this best to avoid another early exit. “When we have our players ready and we can play our attacking game, they (Bayern) are not comfortable,” Mbappé said. “We have to retain how we finished the game. We saw that we can cause them problems.” Mbappé showed no ill effects of the thigh tear he sustained two weeks ago. He had a shot saved by Yann Sommer in the 73rd after racing through down the left. Sommer saved Neymar’s follow-up and the ball fell to Mbappé near the line, but he was well offside. Mbappé peeled away in delight after volleying Nuno Mendes’ cross from close range with 10 minutes left, but it was chalked off following a quick video review. “That’s the new soccer, there’s VAR. If it’s offside, it’s offside, you just have to switch quickly,” Mbappé said. “The important thing is to go over there and qualify, and from what I saw that's possible.” Bayern’s defense held firm under some late pressure, although defender Benjamin Pavard received a second yellow card was sent off for a late tackle on Lionel Messi in stoppage time. Bayern immediately generated pressure from the start against a nervous-looking PSG by closing down high up the field. PSG hadn’t lost three straight games since late 2011, which was only months into the new reign of Qatari owners QSI. “Bayern really got on top of us and we struggled to hold the ball high up the pitch. The first half was very difficult for us,” Galtier said. “I knew we could use Kylian in the second half, but unfortunately we conceded this goal just before I was going to bring him on.” The dominance of Julian Nagelsmann’s team in midfield was so complete that it forced Messi to drop deep to get the ball, and Neymar was anonymous for most of the match. “We were a bit surprised by how much of the ball we had. We didn’t expect Paris to be so passive; it was a good first half,” Nagelsmann said. "The two times they really threatened it was offside.” Midway through the first half, Neymar lay face-first on the field after a shoulder barge from a defender. English referee Michael Oliver waved play on and Sommer — although nearby — didn’t check on Neymar, who at the 2018 World Cup in Russia earned an unwelcome reputation for diving and play-acting. Bayern’s possession didn’t lead to clear chances, however, and midfielder Joshua Kimmich’s 20-meter drive was easily captured by goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 43rd. Nagelsmann showed shrewd tactical sense by bringing on Davies and switching Coman from the left to the right flank with seamless efficiency. Bayern came close to 2-0 when former PSG striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting had a shot tipped onto the post by Donnarumma. PSG midfielder Warren Zaïre-Emery became the youngest player to start a Champions League knockout match at the age of 16 years, 343 days.