France skipper Kylian Mbappe is under fire at home for opting out of the upcoming Nations League clashes against Israel and Belgium, despite being fit to play for Real Madrid.
The star forward, who sustained a muscle injury last month, returned to action as a substitute in Real Madrid’s Champions League loss to Lille last Wednesday.
France coach Didier Deschamps excluded Mbappe from the national squad announced Thursday, citing a lack of match readiness due to limited playing time.
However, just days later, Mbappe started in Real Madrid’s La Liga victory over Villarreal on Saturday.
"Either you're injured and you don't play for your club, or you're not called up to the national team," former France international Maxime Bossis told French sports daily L’Equipe on Monday.
"But when you come off the bench in the Champions League and start a league game, it makes things unclear. He's a special player. We've seen this before with Michel Platini, when we still wanted him with us, even when he was injured."
In a video released by the French Football Federation (FFF) on Monday, Deschamps said: "Kylian embodies a lot of things... The interests of the clubs and the national teams inevitably diverge. We must also remember that the employer is the club, not the federation."
Mbappe's situation is more complicated because the former Paris Saint-Germain player is the France captain, having been handed the armband ahead of Antoine Griezmann, who announced his retirement from international football last week.
France, second in Group A, face Israel in Budapest on Thursday and travel to Belgium next Monday.
"(The captaincy) is on my mind. But as I do every time, the key is to discuss it with the players involved," coach Deschamps added.
"Obviously, with Kylian as our captain, and Antoine, who was the vice-captain, both missing, there will definitely be others for these two matches."
Griezmann's commitment to Les Bleus was never in doubt, as the Atletico Madrid forward played a record 84 consecutive matches for his country between 2017 and 2024.
"As a captain, Mbappe must be an example for the fans, and he has not been," Fabien Bonnet, spokesperson for the Irresistibles Français, the main France supporters' group, told L'Equipe.
"What emerges is that the real captain, Antoine Griezmann, is gone."
On choosing the skipper for the Nations League games, Deschamps said: "It’s more about finding certain players who can handle this responsibility in the moment without it affecting their behavior or performance.
"That’s why it’s important for me to really know the players on a personal level – their character, their sensitivity – relative to the group."
