Kylian Mbappe: Dayot Upamecano says France ‘lack a bit of gratitude’ towards ‘important’ captain after latest omission
Updated 13/11/2024 at 13:32 GMT
France will again be without Kylian Mbappe when they face Israel and Italy in the UEFA Nations League. The Real Madrid forward has been left out of the squad by Didier Deschamps as a "one-off". Defender Dayot Upamecano has given his backing to Mbappe and said he remains "very important" to France. He hopes that he will return to the international squad soon.
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Dayot Upamecano believes there is a “lack of gratitude” shown towards Kylian Mbappe and has given his support to the Real Madrid forward amid his continued absence from the France squad.
Deschamps said the decision was a "one-off" but has not gone into further detail.
Mbappe was also left out of France's squad for the Nations League matches in October after recently returning from injury.
“I don’t think it’s a cause for concern,” said France defender Upamecano.
“We mustn’t forget what Kylian has done for the French team. We lack a bit of gratitude towards him and I hope to see him again very soon.
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“We’re human beings and the mental aspect is very important for us as footballers. I won’t go into details, but as I said, he’s our captain, and I hope he’ll be back with us soon. He’s very important to us.”
Mbappe has not been in top form this season following his move from Paris Saint-Germain to Madrid.
He has scored just once in his last seven games in all competitions and failed to fire in a 4-0 Clasico defeat to Barcelona.
He has scored 48 goals in 86 appearances for France and Upamecano hopes to see him back in international duty soon.
“He is a great player, also a friend, and I know what he is capable of," he added.
“I hope he will be back and I hope he will have the armband as soon as he is back.”
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Mbappe’s last appearance for France was in September when he came on as a substitute in a 2-0 win over Belgium.
Discussing his decision to leave Mbappe out of the squad for the second time in a row, Deschamps said: “I had several exchanges with him. I thought about it and made this decision about this gathering. I think it's better like this. I'm not going to argue.
“It’s a one-off choice for this gathering with the two matches awaiting us. It's my decision, it's better that way.
"I can understand that this is not enough for you, but I am not going to get into an argument that leads to interpretations. I don't want to tell you more. I take responsibility for this decision."
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