Kylian Mbappé (25) hasn’t even played during this international break, but he has been the subject of all of the talk around the France set-up.
Controversially, he was omitted from Didier Deschamps’ squad to face Israel and Belgium in the UEFA Nations League. That decision, taken in conjunction with the player and his club, Real Madrid, was taken with player welfare and fitness in mind, as he continued to return to full fitness following a thigh injury.
As the controversy abated, Mbappé was then spotted in Stockholm, Sweden, and according to local media, went to a club on the night of Les Bleus’ match against Israel. He reportedly also visited a nightclub on the night, before returning to Madrid, via Corsica.
More controversy was sparked on Monday night, just before Les Bleus’ match against Belgium. RMC Sport relayed information from Swedish media Aftonbladet, which reported that a police enquiry for a suspected rape, which happened in the same hotel that Mbappé stayed in Stockholm earlier this week, had been opened.
The report from Aftonbladet in Sweden did not mention Mbappé as being a subject of the police’s investigation, unlike a report from Expressen later that evening, which stated the contrary. Speaking to the AFP, the Real Madrid forward’s entourage stated that they were unaware that he was the subject of any enquiry, and, confirming the enquiry, the Swedish prosecutor did not mention Mbappé’s name.
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Mbappé himself reacted to the initial report from Aftonbladet, replying to RMC Sport’s aggregation and calling out the “FAKE NEWS”, insinuating that former club Paris Saint-Germain were trying to sully his image on the eve of a hearing with his former club regarding unpaid wages and bonuses. Speaking after France’s 2-1 win over Belgium, Deschamps reacted to the latest controversy.
“At the minute, [stories] are coming from everywhere, in whatever way. News, fake news, I don’t know. It is difficult. He is big enough to communicate. We have an environment which is very negative. You have to be careful when you relay things. I am not saying that I know because I don’t,” said Deschamps.
He added, “It is best to take a step back before publishing whatever. However, there are things that aren’t difficult to verify, but if you give credit to whoever… I am taking a step back from it but it isn’t a good thing for the France national team.”
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
