It was a clash of giants at the FIFA Club World Cup quarterfinals. Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich faced off for a semi-final berth, and the Ligue 1 champions earned their spot by beating the German club 2-0. Yet, one of the most visually horrific on-field injuries in recent memory overshadowed that win and everything else on the night. And for Bayern Munich, Jamal Musiala’s injury was a far bigger blow than just missing out on the Club World Cup final.

What’s worse? The 22-year-old future Bayern Munich superstar had just recently returned to 100% from a previous injury. A torn hamstring muscle kept the striker out since April, and he made a roaring comeback against Auckland City last month, scoring a hat-trick. Unfortunately, all that came to a shocking end and left fans doubting his return.

The devastating injury happened late in the first half when Musiala was gunning for the ball near PSG’s post. However, the Bayern forward and PSG’s goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma only had eyes for the ball. So when Donnarumma jumped for it, his weight fell on Jamal Musiala’s left foot, who ran into the goalie. The sheer torque of the collision snapped Musiala’s ankle, and fans don’t believe he’ll be back anytime soon.

They didn’t agree when Fabrizio Romano revealed the diagnosis and the recovery time. “Jamal Musiala has broken his left fibula and damaged several ligaments, reports BILD. Musiala will likely be out for 4-5 months,” he wrote on X. However, the fan immediately expressed skepticism. “Out for 4-5 months? He might never play at a high level ever again,” one stunned fan said after witnessing the horrific injury.

And the fans weren’t the only ones scared for Jamal Musiala after that shocking ankle injury. Bayern Munich manager Vincent Kompany felt distraught after watching the young German writhe in pain on the soccer field. “It was emotional. Of course it didn’t look good. I hope it’s not too bad, but it didn’t look good. I hope he’ll have the best possible recovery,” said the head coach, as per @iMiaSanMia on X. However, the fans aren’t really hopeful.

Jamal Musiala’s injury had fans questioning everything

Despite Romano’s reporting on the tentative recovery date, fans continued to show skepticism. “4-5 months with that type of injury? I doubt,” commented one soccer fan, who couldn’t see the forward coming back for the foreseeable future. Others joined in, and one netizen even gave their prediction on how long the 22-year-old will take to recover.

“4-5 months? No chance, that’s a year out easy. Bless him. Get well soon, Jamal Musiala. My heart goes out to you, sweet kid,” proclaimed that fan. It almost seemed like most of the fan base struggled to find any optimism about the young German national team star. Then again, the entire soccer community is still reeling from another devastating event.

On Thursday, July 3, Liverpool star Diogo Jota and his brother met a tragic end when their car skidded off the pavement. The soccer world woke up to the devastating news, and now, barely three days later, the rising German forward has suffered what could be a season-ending injury. In fact, some feel that Musiala will suffer the aftereffects of this injury for the rest of his career.

Thankfully, not everyone feared the worst for Jamal Musiala, who helped break Germany’s eight-year curse. “The incident, where his leg was trapped under PSG goalkeeper Donnarumma, highlights the physical risks in high-stakes soccer matches, with studies like those from the British Journal of Sports Medicine (2021) showing fibula fractures in athletes often require 16-24 weeks of recovery, aligning with the reported timeline,” claimed one fan.

Meanwhile, some also thought about what Gianluigi Donnarumma went through. After all, the goalkeeper jumped for the ball and didn’t intend to injure the Bayern Munich forward. “PSG goalkeeper didn’t mean to do it, actually,” one fan noted. And it was apparent watching Donnarumma’s reaction immediately after the collision.

The Italian goalkeeper looked stunned as he went down on his knees, covering his face after glancing back at Musiala. He even took to Instagram later to wish the 22-year-old a speedy recovery. “All my prayers and well wishes are with you @jamalmusiala10,” wrote the 26-year-old keeper. However, only time will tell how fast or slow Jamal Musiala recovers from the devastating injury.