Europe’s elite face off amid tiredness, injuries

BERLIN, Germany:

No rest for the winners.

Sandwiched between the Champions League final and Club World Cup, the Nations League final four provides another opportunity to win a trophy for players who might have more need of a break.

Seven France players, four from Portugal, and one each from Spain and Germany were involved as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) defeated Inter Milan in the Champions League final on Saturday.

Germany defender Yann Aurel Bisseck was injured playing for Inter and will miss the Nations League semi-final against Portugal in Munich today.

PSG players Goncalo Ramos, Joao Neves, Nuno Mendes and Vitinha will need to shake off any lingering effects from celebrations before they play for Portugal.

France play Spain in the other semi-final in Stuttgart tomorrow, when Spain's Fabian Ruiz is likely to start in midfield despite starring in midfield for PSG on Saturday.

France players Desire Doue, Bradley Barcola, Ousmane Dembele, Lucas Hernandez and Warren Zaire-Emery all helped PSG end their long wait to lift the Champions League trophy. France players Marcus Thuram and Benjamin Pavard were on the losing side for Inter Milan.

While France coach Didier Deschamps will need to assess the impact of PSG's partying on his players, three of his preferred four-man backline are also injured. William Saliba, Dayot Upamecano and Jules Kounde are all out. Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga is also injured as a long season takes its toll.

The winners of each semi-final will contest the final in Munich on Sunday. The losers won't get a break yet -- they'll need to play in Stuttgart to decide third place.

In the quarter-finals, Spain defeated the Netherlands on penalties, France also needed penalties against Croatia, Germany defeated Italy 5-4 on aggregate, and Portugal beat Denmark 5-3 on aggregate.

The evergreen Cristiano Ronaldo, now 40, will lead Portugal again. He might not get a break after this tournament either.

- AP