Bayern Munich and Senegal star Sadio Mane is reportedly set to miss the next three months after undergoing surgery on his leg and he has emerged as a doubt for the Champions League last-16 tie against Paris Saint-Germain.
The 30-year-old was forced off just 20 minutes into Bayern's 6-1 Bundesliga victory over Werder Bremen on November 8 and faced the prospect of missing out on representing Senegal at the 2022 World Cup.
Mane was then named in Aliou Cisse's 26-man squad for the tournament in Qatar and a spokesperson of the nation's football federation later revealed that the attacker would miss the "first games" in the group stage.
However, it has now been confirmed that Mane will play no part at the World Cup after scans revealed that his injury is worse than first feared.
"Unfortunately, today's MRI shows us that the progress was not as favourable as we had hoped," Senegal team doctor Manuel Afonso said on Thursday. "The result is unfortunately us withdrawing Sadio from the World Cup."
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Bayern have also released a statement confirming that Mane has undergone successful surgery and will soon begin his rehabilitation programme in Munich.
A statement on their official website read: "Sadio Mane underwent successful surgery in Innsbruck by Prof Christian Fink and Dr Andy Williams from London on Thursday evening.
"During the operation, a tendon was reattached to the head of his right fibula. The FC Bayern forward will therefore no longer be available to play for Senegal at the World Cup and will begin his rehab in Munich in the next few days."
According to German news outlet Bild, Mane is now set for three months on the sidelines and could miss the first leg of Bayern's Champions League last-16 tie away against PSG on February 14.
Mane would also be in line to miss Bayern's opening six domestic fixtures after the World Cup, including a Bundesliga away clash against RB Leipzig on January 20.
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The two-time African Footballer of the Year will now cheer his Senegalese teammates on from the treatment table, with the Africa Cup of Nations holders taking on hosts Qatar, Netherlands and Ecuador in Group A.
Indeed, Senegal will have to cope without their all-time leading scorer, who has netted 34 times in 93 appearances across all tournaments.
Mane joined Bayern from Liverpool over the summer and he has settled in quickly under Julian Nagelsmann, contributing with 11 goals and four assists in 23 games for the German giants this season.
Mane is the latest star from the Bundesliga to be ruled out of the World Cup after RB Leipzig duo Timo Werner and Christopher Nkunku and Borussia Dortmund's Marco Reus.
Oliver Thomas
