June 7, 2006
A WIN AND A LOSS
France beats China in warmup, loses Cisse

France defeated China, 3-1 in a World Cup warmup Thursday, but lost striker Djibril Cisse for the entire tournament when he suffered a broken leg early in the match.

The Liverpool striker fractured his right tibia in the 11th minute following a collision with Chinese captain Zhi Zheng. After laying prone for several minutes, Cisse was stretchered off and French coach Raymond Domenech confirmed the 24-year-old's tournament-ending injury.

"Cisse went straight to the hopsital where he is currentlyl being operated on," Domenech was quoted by Sportinglife.com. "He hsa an open fracture of the tibia."