Tottenham forward Mathys Tel has been forced to pull out of France’s Under-21 squad.

The decision comes after Tel had to eventually be substituted due to being on the receiving end of Jayden Bogle’s strong tackle during the 1-0 loss to Leeds at Elland Road on Saturday.

Replays showed the the Leeds defender had landed his studs on Tel’s left Achilles, though he avoided any punishment from referee John Brooks.

In addition, while the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) reviewed the challenge for around four minutes, they ultimately deemed it did not meet the threshold for serious foul play.

Tel, however, departed Elland Road with his left foot in a protective boot and Spurs head coach Roberto De Zerbi was fearing the worst.

“Bad injury, and now we have to make the medical check,” De Zerbi said in his post-match press conference.

“In the next days we will know what is the problem.”

Injury blow: Mathys Tel

Getty

As confirmed by French Football Federation (FFF) on Monday, Tel will not be linking up with the France U21s as a result of the injury, meaning he will miss matches against Italy and England.

A statement reads: “Having suffered an injury with his club Tottenham, Mathys Tel is forced to withdraw from the France Under-21 team training camp which began this Monday at the CNF Clairefontaine.”

It still remains to be seen how long Tel will be sidelined for, with a further update likely to follow during the international break or when De Zerbi addresses the media in the pre-Ipswich press conference later in the month.