Antoine Mendy Suffers Cruciate Ligament Injury After Nice Draw

Nice’s 1-1 draw with Le Mans has come at a far higher price than two dropped points. The club have lost defender Antoine Mendy for months after the Senegal international tore the cruciate ligament in his left knee.

Scans on Sunday confirmed the diagnosis, matching the medical staff’s immediate fears from the moment he went down. There was no contact, no crunching tackle. Mendy landed awkwardly on his left leg and stayed on the turf, the pain written all over his face.

He had only just come on, introduced from the bench with around 15 minutes to play, tasked with helping to see the game out. Instead, he could not even finish the match, forced to leave the Allianz Riviera in obvious distress, clutching at his knee as he headed off.

The final whistle brought no relief. Nice had surrendered a win; worse, they learned they would be without one of their defenders for a long stretch. The scans revealed a cruciate ligament tear that will sideline Mendy for several months.

The exact length of his absence will depend on how his treatment and rehabilitation unfold, but for Nice, the damage is already clear. A frustrating draw has turned into a brutal setback for the season ahead.