Just propelled captain of the France team, Kylian Mbappé was the main architect of the almost perfect evening against the Netherlands on Friday (4-0).
Two goals and an assist at the end of an easy victory without flat at home. Kylian Mbappé could not have dreamed of a better start to his reign. For his first with the captain’s armband in the France team, which his predecessor Hugo Lloris wore for eleven years, he largely participated in the correction inflicted on the Netherlands at the start of the Euro 2024 qualifiers (4-0) , Friday, March 24.
While he could have been content to have killed the match at the start of the first period, the Paris Saint-Germain striker wanted to add one last note. His two devastating feints, which put the entire opposing defense at bay, reminded us how much pressure had no hold on him. On Friday, like every other game night, his name was shouted louder than everyone else’s. Phones, eyes and cameras were trained on him as soon as he entered the warm-up. Without really upsetting his routine, Kylian Mbappé sent some subtle signs to show his change in status.
“I try to take the team with me”
For example, he took the lead in the warm-up line, where he used to hang out at the back of the class, and we saw him choose Antoine Griezmann as his warm-up partner. One more communication operation, after the press conference the day before, to extinguish for good the embers of a potential controversy, a few days after the revelation of the disappointment of “Grizou”, having to be content with the status of vice- captain.
If there was still any doubt at the time of kick-off, the latter flew away after only one minute and 55 seconds of play, when Kylian Mbappé offered the opener to Griezmann, precisely. The two men hugged, without the slightest restraint, which did not surprise Didier Deschamps at all in the post-match press conference: “Between what is said and reality… They are two players who get along very well and who work very well together. Antoine’s disappointment lasted two minutes. There is not the slightest problem with Kylian , or with the whole group”.
Against the Netherlands, there was not the slightest downside in the performance of the new captain, nor in his contribution on the pitch, nor in his attitude among his teammates. He avoided the pitfall of absolutely wanting to make a difference on his own, which earned him some criticism after the group stage at the World Cup. More involved than usual in the defensive phases, Mbappé also showed a conciliatory face, as when he encouraged Khephren Thuram after the latter chose the shot rather than the pass at the very end of the game (90th + 2).
“I continue to do my job, help the team and be decisive by making the difference. But now I try to take the team with me. It worked today but it’s only the beginning. We must not ignite, the hardest part remains to be done”reacted the interested party to the microphone of TF1 after the meeting which saw him overtake Karim Benzema to become the fifth top scorer in the history of the Blues (38 achievements) at only 24 years old.