France suffer Paul Willemse blow ahead of World Cup

France have suffered another blow ahead of the home Rugby World Cup campaign with lock Paul Willemse withdrawn from the squad due to an injury.

The 30-year-old, who also missed the 2019 World Cup after getting injured had hurt his thigh this week and is now replaced by his Montpellier teammate Bastien Chalureau in the 33-man squad.

Willemse played three out of the four warm-ups for the Les Bleus but managed just 13 games for Montpellier last season due to a recurring thigh injury.

Meanwhile, started his senior career with Perpignan in 2014 and also featured for Nevers, Toulouse and recently Montpellier which he joined in 2020. A former France Under 20 international, the 31-year-old made his Test debut against South Africa in Marseille last November.

The news on Willemse is a big blow for France considering they had Romain Ntamack already ruled out of the tournament while Cyril Baille is already ruled out of the tournament opener against the All Blacks. Centre Jonathan Danty is also doubtful for the game against New Zealand due to a thigh injury.