Didier Deschamps explains Kylian Mbappé’s absence from France squad: “I made the decision.”

With Kylian Mbappé missing out on the France squad for the second international break in a row, manager Didier Deschamps – speaking at Thursday’s squad announcement – remained evasive when asked about the Real Madrid striker’s absence.

The ensuing press conference, attended by GFFN, was inevitably dominated by questions regarding Mbappé. The 25-year-old captain, whose absence from the squad last month had already proved controversial, will miss out on the two Nations League matches against Israel and Italy next week.

While the France manager avoided going into any detail about the reasons for the Real Madrid man’s omission, he did emphasise that the decision was his own:

“I had several discussions with him, I had a think about it, and I made the decision for this specific international break. I can tell you two things: Kylian wanted to come, and it’s not about off-pitch issues. It’s a choice that was made for this international break, with the two matches that await us.”

“It’s my decision, it’s better that way. I understand that it might not suit you [journalists], but I don’t want to any reasoning that might be open to interpretation.”

GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin