The continued absence of Kylian Mbappé (25) from the French team has not only called his commitment to Les Bleus into question, but also his role as captain.
The Real Madrid striker attended September's international break without really wanting to. “I had a conversation with the manager (Didier Deschamps) in September in which I asked him not to select me. I wasn't doing well, I had hardly had a holiday. He insisted that I come and that went well,” he told Clique TV on Sunday.
However, he was absent from the next two international matches. The former was justified on medical grounds, as the former Paris Saint-Germain striker had only recently recovered from injury. However, he was expected to return in November. In the end he didn't.
The reasons for his continued absence remained vague. Deschamps declined to go into details but said it had nothing to do with “non-sporting” matters, referring to reports that Mbappe is a suspect in an ongoing investigation into suspected rape in Sweden. The French captain was on holiday in Stockholm at the time of the alleged event.
Mbappe attempted to reaffirm his commitment to Les Bleus during his recent interview. “I can't say why I was left out. It was the coach's decision […] I wanted to go, but wasn't selected […] I've always said there's nothing more important [than the France national team]. My love for the French national team has not changed,” he said.
The issue of the captaincy, which Mbappe inherited when Hugo Lloris retired from international football, has yet to really be raised. Philippe Diallo, the president of the FFF, says that the Real Madrid striker must discuss the subject with his manager and therefore chooses to take a backseat.
“It is up to Kylian to raise this subject with Didier,” Diallo began in an interview with L'Équipe. “Our next camp is in March 2025 with the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations League. It is necessary that new exchanges take place between him and Didier Deschamps […] Being Captain of France is an honor. It should not become a question.”
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
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