The reason Kylian Mbappe was left out of the latest France squad has been revealed after the Real Madrid striker was bizarrely omitted despite being fit.
Mbappe is captain of the France national team and was the shock name missing when Les Blues head coach Didier Deschamps named his squad for upcoming UEFA Nations League clashes.
The 25-year-old is the focal point of France’s attacks and the team have previously struggled in his absence but will have to do so again when they take on Israel and neighbouring Belgium.
Mbappe has endured a strong start to life in Spain after leaving PSG for Madrid in the summer and has bagged seven goals in 10 matches across all competitions.
A thigh injury kept him out of last weekend’s Madrid derby that ended up 1-1, but did return to the pitch as a second-half substitute in Wednesday’s shock Champions League defeat against Lille.
Kylian Mbappe was a surprise omission from France’s latest squad despite returning from injury with Real Madrid
Mbappe won’t feature in either of France’s upcoming UEFA Nations League matches
The 25-year-old has only recently recovered from a small thigh injury and did feature midweek in the Champions League
Despite being fit and available for selection, Mbappe won’t be linking up with his national team colleagues after a conversation with Deschamps left the France boss with an easy decision to make.
Deschamps revealed that while Mbappe has recovered from injury, he doesn’t want to take unnecessary risks and would rather leave his star player at home to recover with bigger matches waiting ahead.
‘I had an exchange with Kylian. He has a problem which is not serious,’ Deschamps told reporters in Paris.
‘I am not going to take risks, which is why he is not in the squad,’ he added.
France head coach Didier Deschamps revealed he doesn’t want to take a ‘risk’ with Mbappe’s fitness
Deschamps has previously been able to call on Antoine Griezmann for goals in Mbappe’s absence, but won’t be able to do again after the forward announced his international retirement at the start of the week.
The 33-year-old was a regular feature at Euro 2024 and made the decision to step down from international duty after 137 national team appearances.
Hailing the World Cup and Nations League winner, Deschamps continued: ‘He had such an impact that we can’t play in the same way.
‘I am not necessarily going to change the system, but I am not going to look for an equivalent player.’
