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Why Menoncello did not play against Bordeaux
Tommaso Menoncello was not in the matchday 23 for Toulouse-Bordeaux on 13 September. The reason is a calf problem picked up in training in the days before the game: a late withdrawal, handled by the Toulouse staff with the caution typical of the opening weeks of a season.
A minor strain, managed carefully
According to the French press the injury is a limited one and is not a cause for concern. Precisely for that reason, though, Toulouse chose to take no risks in September: he is expected to be out for roughly two weeks and will also miss the trip to Vannes.
It confirms what was circulating around the match at the time, when a minor physical problem reported by Canal+ was being mentioned without anything official to back it up.
The centre department had already been reshaped
Menoncello’s absence came on top of another one that had arrived earlier: Pierre-Louis Barassi injured his ankle in Toulouse’s defeat at La Rochelle (30-27) on the opening weekend and was ruled out for several weeks. With two centres unavailable, Ugo Mola went with the pairing of Kevin Gourgues and Santiago Chocobares.
The new midfield pairing passed the test
The choice paid off: Chocobares scored on 31 minutes in a devastating 36-0 first half, while Gourgues was at the heart of the move that produced Capuozzo’s try. Toulouse needed pace and the ability to attack wide after their narrow loss at La Rochelle, and the backline Mola picked — with Capuozzo and Teddy Thomas on the wings, Dupont and Ntamack at half-back — looks designed for exactly that.
When Menoncello returns
There is no official date, but the indications point to a return within a couple of weeks. The Italy centre arrived off an excellent debut in the red and black at La Rochelle, complete with a 50-metre try in that opening defeat: competition in the Toulouse midfield, with Barassi also due back and Gourgues in fine form, remains fierce.
Read also: Capuozzo show as Toulouse crush Bordeaux 48-12 · Paolo Garbisi starts again at Perpignan
Update, 18 September 2026. The first version of this article, published on 14 September, explained Menoncello’s absence as a purely tactical decision linked to Barassi’s injury and ruled out a physical problem of his own. Information published subsequently in the French press contradicted that account: the Italy centre had a calf problem and withdrew at the last moment. The text has been corrected accordingly.