'Everyone Was Shaken': Jesse Marsch Opens Up on Ismael Kone Injury

Canada pulled off the biggest World Cup victory in the nation's history when they beat Qatar 6-0 at BC Place in Vancouver.

This win put Jesse Marsch's squad on top of Group B, and the Canadians now find themselves in a prime position to secure a spot in the knockout stages.

Unfortunately, the win was overshadowed to an extent by Ismaël Koné's horrific injury in the second half of the match.

During the 51st minute, Qatar's Assim Madibo committed a harsh tackle on Koné that resulted in the Canadian being stretchered off by the medical staff.

What happened to Ismael Kone? Canada Star's World Cup Over

As per a report by Fabrizio Romano, the 24-year-old is said to have suffered a broken tibia as well as a broken fibula and is expected to be out of the World Cup and out of action for 5 months.

Kone was then taken to the hospital and, as per the latest reports, was being prepped for surgery to repair the break.

Later, while addressing the incident, head coach Jesse Marsch revealed the immediate reaction in the Canada dressing room when the situation played out.

Acknowledging that it was a huge disappointment for the team to lose the midfielder during the World Cup, Marsch admitted that the entire team was left ‘shaken' by the incident.

"It was right in front of us, and everyone could hear the bone snap," Marsch said, recalling the exact moment of the tackle.

"I haven't spoken to Ismaël yet, but he's at the hospital. He will prepare for surgery. I'm going to go see him after this press conference. We'll see exactly what we decide to do for him. Everybody's a little shaken by the whole experience because of the nature of the injury, and also because Ismaël is a big part of the heart of our team. It will be a big loss for us," he added.

Marsch also praised Koné's character after the midfielder waved to the fans despite the injury while being taken off the field.

"He was waving to the crowd and almost making everybody else feel at ease with the fact that he's injured, and that's an incredible statement about Ismaël as a person," Marsch said.

He then further added that the team had to focus in order to finish the job despite the circumstances.

"Everybody was crushed when it happened, but we had to find a way to stay focused. We knew that Ismaël wanted us to finish the job. There's a lot of thoughts that go through our heads right now. We're all thinking about him, but we're all very proud of what we are."

Marsch also revealed that Madibo, who left the pitch in tears after getting a red card for the tackle, apologized to Koné. But the coach also questioned the Qatar side for protesting the red card, claiming it was "strange behavior" from the side.

"Let me be clear, the player apologized to Ismaël, like came into the dressing room and apologized to him, and Ismaël told the team, or let the team know, that that had happened," Marsch said.

"So I don't think that he meant such a gruesome tackle or gruesome situation, so I don't fault him for that. But I don't understand a reaction from their entire bench to try to start a fight about it being a red card when a clear foul just happened that broke a player's leg, some strange behavior."

Canada faces Switzerland in the next group stage fixture on June 24.

Copyright 2026 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This story was originally published June 19, 2026 at 2:25 AM.