The young left-back of the Portuguese National Team, Nuno Mendes, who was substituted due to injury against Uruguay (2-0) on Tuesday, will miss the rest of the 2022 World Cup, according to a source close to the Portuguese team.
"There are few chances for the player to return to the field before the end of January," the source said.
The Portuguese Federation confirmed that the left-back from Paris Saint Germain had a thigh injury and that he was not available for "participating in the national team's activities," according to the medical staff.
Nuno Mendes, 20, will remain "with the delegation, where he will begin the recovery process," the Portuguese federation added in a statement.
Raphael Guerreiro is his replacement
Mendes was absent in Portugal's World Cup debut against Ghana (3-2) due to muscle fatigue. In the match against Uruguay, he was replaced at halftime, with tears in his eyes, by Raphael Guerreiro.
Portugal has already qualified for the round of 16 in Qatar 2022 and only needs one point in their last group stage match against South Korea on Friday to secure first place in their group.
(Information from AFP)