Kylian Mbappé starts in Madrid but is absent in the selection… The reasons which can excuse the attacker

The captain of the Blues was not called up by Didier Deschamps, who wanted to let him recover from an injury to his left thigh which does not prevent him from playing with Real Madrid.

“I’m not here to take risks.”. The words are from Didier Deschamps and must justify the absence of Kylian Mbappé in the France group for the Nations League matches against Israel, Thursday, and against Belgium, Monday. However, Carlo Ancelotti decided to apply another logic in the management of his striker at Real Madrid.

Injured in the biceps femoris at the end of September, the captain of the Blues was initially supposed to be away from the field for three weeks, but played 30 minutes against Lille on Wednesday in the Champions League, and was starter against Villarreal in La Ligathree days later, playing 70 minutes. The absence of Kylian Mbappé, even though he seems fit, is controversial, especially since he has been the captain of the Blues for a year and a half.

“We never whistle at the players of the French team, even if they play for a club that we don’t like. But, from what I see in the WhatsApp conversations, I’m not sure that he avoid the whistles at the next home match, fears Anne Costes, vice-president of the French Irrésistibles, the main group of supporters of the France team. He doesn’t communicate. If he explains himself, maybe we can hear his decision“. Franceinfo: sport is precisely interested in the reasons which can justify the absence of the tricolor star.

Mbappé respects Fifa regulations

Fifa requires clubs to make a selected player available to their national team federation, and according to the French Football Federation, a player can only decline selection if he is ill or unable to play. But in the case of Kylian Mbappé, the player was not selected by Didier Deschamps and therefore does not break any rules.

By not calling him up, the coach saved him from choose between Real Madrid and the French teamwhat Didier Deschamps said between the lines in an FFF video posted online on Monday: “Naturally, the interests of clubs and national teams diverge at some point. We must not forget that the employer is the club. I know very well that he is not going to go against his club, nor against his selection. After discussion, we must ensure that the player’s interests are prioritized without putting him in difficulty.”

Mbappé approaches 50 matches played in 2024

For several weeks, voices have been raised against overloaded calendars, even to the point of mentioning the possibility of a players’ strikeaccording to Manchester City midfielder Rodri. Matches accumulate as competitions evolve their format. To win the Champions League this season, a team could have to play up to 17 matches starting in the league stage (up from 13 before the reform). Kylian Mbappé has already played 48 matches in 2024, for club and national team, and could reach 64 matches if he were to play all those of Real Madrid and the French team (apart from the two matches of this gathering), until the end of the year.

In January, in an interview for GQthe captain of the Blues mentioned the example of the NBA, where “players do not play every match and franchises practice load management [laisser au repos des stars même si elles ne sont pas blessées]. But if today I decided to say ‘I’m tired, I’m not playing on Saturday’, it wouldn’t happen. The spectator who pays for his ticket and who will perhaps see me only once during the season, wants to witness a performance worthy of the name, and that is normal. However, it is a different mode of management to which football is exposed if the number of matches increases.”

On the side of the Irrésistibles Français, criticism of the increase in the number of meetings, judged “aberrant”this is not enough to extinguish a certain form of frustration. “OWe are upset that it is the French team which suffers. We can understand that the clubs are the employers, but for us, playing for your country is more important.”

His current level does not make him essential to the Blues

Although he declared in September that “what people think is the least of their worries”did Kylian Mbappé want to find himself under fire again if he failed to make a difference in the selection? Diminished by his discomfort in the biceps of his left leg, could he have had the impact he wanted on the French team’s play? Nothing is less certain. The content of his two post-injury outings with Real largely disappointed.

This summer, the Blues played with a largely diminished Kylian Mbappé, and with a broken nose, and that did not bring the crowds to their feet. The Bondy prodigy’s Euro was widely criticized, and rightly so. The person concerned admitted this, referring to a “difficult, failed competition”. These third and fourth days of the Nations League are not crucial for the future of the France team. The absence of Mbappé will, perhaps, be a lesser evil to allow other players to gain exposure, to gain experience with the Blues, at a time when Didier Deschamps is using the League of Nations to “see players” and share playing time.