France captain Kylian Mbappé began Real’s La Liga match against Villarreal on Saturday.
France captain Kylian Mbappé is under scrutiny in his home country for missing Les Bleus’ Nations League matches against Israel and Belgium, despite being available to play for Real Madrid.
The forward suffered a muscle injury last month but returned to the field in the Champions League last Wednesday.
In response to this situation, France coach Didier Deschamps excluded Mbappé from the squad he announced on Thursday, citing the 25-year-old’s lack of preparation due to insufficient match play.
Meanwhile, Mbappé started Real’s La Liga match against Villarreal on Saturday.
“Either you’re injured, and you don’t play with your club and aren’t called up to the national team,” former France international Maxime Bossis told French sports daily L’Équipe on Monday. “But when you come off the bench in the Champions League and start a league game, it complicates things. He’s a special player. We’ve seen this before with Michel Platini, who was still wanted with us even when he was injured.”
Mbappé’s situation is further complicated by the fact that he is the national team captain, having been given the armband over Antoine Griezmann, who announced his retirement from international football last week.
Griezmann’s dedication to Les Bleus was never questioned; the Atlético Madrid forward played a record 84 consecutive matches for his country from 2017 to 2024.
“As a captain, Mbappé must set an example for the fans, and he has not done so,” said Fabien Bonnet, spokesperson for the Irresistibles Francais, the main supporters’ group in France. “What stands out is that the real captain, Antoine Griezmann, is gone.”
France, currently second in Group A, will face Israel in Budapest on Thursday before traveling to Belgium next Monday.
