Kylian Mbappé’s trip to Dubai in the middle of the international break has stirred plenty of reaction. He was released from the French national team due to inflammation in his right ankle and flew straight to the United Arab Emirates.
Rather than returning to Madrid, Mbappé opted for a quick trip to Dubai and immediately became a target on social media.
However French Football Federation president Philippe Diallo defended the decision in an interview with L’Équipe. Diallo said: “The national team doctors found inflammation in his ankle. Since he was slightly injured, and because the match in Azerbaijan had no sporting significance, we took a precaution and released him to his club. It’s then up to Real Madrid to run further tests and make a decision with him. It’s no longer a matter for the French national team."
Diallo also voiced strong support for the Real Madrid star and downplayed the controversy. He said: “I want to express my full support for Kylian Mbappé because today, and this isn’t the first time, he’s facing an unbelievable level of harassment about his private life. He’s a young man who can’t move freely, go out in public or do normal things because of his enormous fame."
“I even saw people photographing his luggage tags. Can we give him a little freedom and the chance to breathe in a life that is already extremely intense, with the hope that he’ll be at his best when we need him, which is for the World Cup?”
Diallo repeated that “no one is above the French national team” and stressed that Didier Deschamps had already decided to change all eleven starters for Sunday’s match in Azerbaijan, with the expectation that Mbappé would not have played a single minute. The striker had led France only days earlier with a brace against Ukraine that sealed qualification for the next World Cup.