Lille beat Le Havre as Tiago Santos is carried off with a knee injury

Lille beat Le Havre 1-0 on Saturday, but the result was accompanied by major concern over Tiago Santos. The right-back was carried off on a stretcher, with Romain Perraud alongside him, after injuring his right knee. Santos had been getting back into his rhythm, two years after a serious injury to his left knee.

The incident happened as Santos stretched out his right leg to control the ball. His foot stayed planted on the ground and Amir Richardson hit him from behind. Concern at Lille is heightened by the team’s limited options in that position. The reaction was summed up in the words: “The movement is not good to see.”

His departure leaves Lille without one option in an already thin area of the squad. The defensive picture had just gained a new option: Tanguy Nianzou, an additional defender, was being discovered by the crowd at Pierre-Mauroy. But a poorly controlled pass from Nianzou preceded the loss of another player, in a sequence that underlined the setback for Lille.

The win over Le Havre therefore comes with an immediate concern over Santos and Lille’s options in his position. He had only just been finding his rhythm again after his previous injury; now he has left on a stretcher with an injury to the other knee.