VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) 鈥� Canada鈥檚 historic first was overshadowed by a gruesome injury to midfielder Isma毛l Kon茅.
Kon茅 injured his left leg when Qatar midfielder Assim Madibo tackled him from behind in the second half, sending the 24-year-old to the ground. Kon茅 grimaced and players rushed to his aid, calling for help from the sidelines.
Madibo was sent off for the tackle on Kon茅, who was protectively surrounded by his teammates while he was treated on the field before he was stretchered off.
鈥淚 saw his leg. I saw that something wasn鈥檛 right,鈥� Canada captain Stephen Eust谩quio said. He was among one of the first players to reach Kon茅.
Kon茅 was whisked to a local hospital were he was preparing for surgery while surrounded by family, Canada coach Jesse Marsch said. He said the injury happened right in front of the bench, and you could hear the 鈥渂ones snap.”
鈥淓verybody was crushed when it happened, but we had to find a way to stay focused, we knew that Isma毛l wanted us to finish the job,” Marsch said. “There鈥檚 a lot of thoughts that go through our heads right now, we鈥檙e all thinking about him, but we鈥檙e all very proud of what we are.鈥�
Marsch added that Madibo personally apologized to Kon茅.
Madibo’s red card left Qatar to play with nine men, after teammate Homam Ahmed was sent off in the first half.
Fewer than 10 minutes later, Kon茅鈥檚 replacement, Nathan Saliba, scored Canada鈥檚 fourth goal in the 6-0 win and held up Kon茅鈥檚 jersey in an emotional tribute.
Canada striker Jonathan David, who scored a hat trick, questioned the need for the tackle on Kon茅.
鈥淚f there鈥檚 a play where you cannot win the ball, there鈥檚 no point,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just to hurt people.鈥�
The details of Kon茅鈥檚 injury have not yet been disclosed. His lower left leg looked visibly broken in photos after the incident.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to miss (Kon茅),鈥� Eust谩quio said. 鈥淗e has that X factor that our team really needs.鈥�
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Connor Joyce and Drew Renner are students in the University of Georgia鈥檚 Carmical Sports Media Institute.
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