Germany wonderkid Lennart Karl will miss the 2026 World Cup after sustaining a torn muscle bundle in his right thigh during a training session.
The 18-year-old was the youngest player included on Julian Nagelsmann’s roster, having already played more than two dozen matches with the German power and debuting with the national team in March friendly matches against Switzerland and Ghana, then playing in a pre-tournament match against Finland.
Karl suffered a muscle tear in his leg during a training session ahead of Germany’s final friendly ahead of its World Cup opener and won’t be able to recover in time to participate.
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His absence is a setback for a German side hoping to re-establish itself among the world’s elite after several disappointing major tournaments.
“Lennart suffered an injury in training and, honestly, it doesn’t look good. We have to wait for the diagnosis and then decide whether he can realistically make the World Cup or if we need to call up a replacement,” Nagelsmann said before the final decision was confirmed.
Following this devastating setback, German head coach Julian Nagelsmann was forced to call up Assan Ouédraogo as Karl’s replacement for the World Cup.
“With Assan Ouédraogo we are now getting a player who, similar to Lenny, had a great start with us,” Nagelsmann said. “He is also highly talented and is meant to play here boldly and freely.”
Nagelsmann also confirmed that veteran goalie Manuel Neuer would not be fit in time to face the US, but hoped he would return for Germany’s first World Cup match against Curacao on June 14.
Neuer, a 2014 World Cup winner, was surprisingly recalled for the tournament in May almost two years after announcing his international retirement.
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“At his age, he doesn’t need a warm-up phase,” Nagelsmann said of Neuer. “He knows how to handle high-pressure situations.
“He’s on his way to peak fitness. However, we don’t want to take any risks tomorrow.”
Germany opens the World Cup on June 14 against Curacao before facing the Ivory Coast on June 20 and closing group play with a June 25 date with Ecuador.
