grim
Wesley Fofana’s horror leg break wasn’t the first time pre-season games turned nasty – Pepe sparked 20-man brawl and Tottenham flop Soldado avoided red for savage challenge
It's every manager's worst nightmare - a player getting a serious injury in a pre-season friendly.
And Brendan Rodgers would have experienced those wide range of emotions when Wesley Fofana suffered a shocking leg injury in Leicester's pre-season friendly with Villarreal on Wednesday night.
5
Both the player and club have suffered confirmed the ghastly challenge from Fernando Nino left the 20-year-old starlet with a broken bone.
It means Fofana is now set for an extended spell on the sidelines, with the young Frenchman since taking to Instagram to thanking Leicester’s ‘wonderful medical team’ and vowing to fans he will come back stronger.
Nino has since issued an apology on Instagram, insisting it was his intention to hurt the Foxes man.
While this type of incident thankfully isn't something which happens regularly in pre-season, there have unfortunately been other examples of these type of fixtures turning nasty.
marvelbet369.com takes a look below...
Roberto Soldado - for Levante vs Villarreal, July 2021
The former Tottenham man quite rightly received stinging criticism for his horrendous challenge on Villarreal ace Jorge Cuenca last week.
The veteran forward, 36, joined Levante from Grenada earlier this summer.
But as far as first impressions go Soldado certainly hasn't done himself any favours whatsoever.
5
Villarreal youngster Cuenca initially got the better of Soldado and was progressing nicely with the ball in possession.
That was until the Soldado responded with what we can only call a disgusting lunge at the 21-year-old, who was evidently in pain.
Despite that the referee felt Soldado's challenge was only worthy of a yellow card...
Pepe - for Porto vs Roma, July 2021
You get the sense that the Portuguese defender, now 38, doesn't understand the meaning of a friendly fixture.
The Porto defender certainly reinforced his reputation as a hot-head last week during a pre-season encounter with Roma, sparking a 20-man brawl.
The former Real Madrid man went in forcefully - to say the least - on Henrikh Mkhitaryan and caught him spark in the face with a flailing arm.
5
Unsurprisingly, the ex-Manchester United midfielder wasn't best pleased, and after rolling on the floor momentarily he saw red mist and tried to kick out back at Pepe.
Pandemonium unfolded with the referee running in to try and calm the exchange with both sets of players and members of coaching teams turning the exchange into a melee.
The punishment for Pepe? Nothing. Let's face it, this guy is an absolute master of the dark arts.
Yasser Larouci - for Liverpool vs Sevilla, July 2019
The defender was on the receiving end of a brutal foul that saw Sevilla defender Joris Gnagnon given his marching orders during a pre-season clash in Boston.
Gnagnon was forced to issue an apology following the match, as Reds utility man James Milner expressed his anger at the challenge.
"Was it too much? I thought so yes, it was a disgraceful tackle," Milner told LFCTV following the game.
Read More on talkSPORT
5
5
"We know it's only a friendly, but I mean, you don't see many red cards in friendlies, do you?"
Thankfully it later emerged Larouci - who now plays for French club Troyes - only suffered heavy bruising to his femur bone and made a swift recovery.
Dream Team 2021/22 - SIGN UP NOW
PLAY DREAM TEAM FOR THE 2021/22 SEASON!
- £100,000 in prize money up for grabs
- £50million budget to build your best XI
- Play in Mini Leagues against your mates, colleagues, etc
- Dream Team app available through Apple Store and Google Play Store
Topics