Mbappé’s Club World Cup campaign hasn’t gone as expected. The Frenchman suffered gastrointestinal issues at the start of the tournament, leading to hospitalization and keeping him sidelined for most of the competition. According to L’Équipe, the cause of his discomfort was bacterial food poisoning from chicken.
The outlet reports that Mbappé was already feeling unwell before boarding the flight that took the Real Madrid squad to Miami, where their World Cup campaign began. From that point on, alarm bells rang. The number 9’s condition deteriorated—his fever and symptoms of acute gastroenteritis worsened, ultimately forcing his hospitalization on the night of Wednesday, June 18, for further testing.
After spending the night in the hospital, he was discharged the following evening. During those hours, his diagnosis evolved through several stages. Initially, upon arriving in Miami, it was thought he was suffering from heat exhaustion. But once admitted to the hospital, doctors feared it could be appendicitis. However, after conducting tests, they determined the true cause to be food poisoning—most likely from bacteria found in poultry.
Once diagnosed, Mbappé began a gradual recovery and eventually returned to training. The process was slow, as he lost six kilograms due to the illness. In fact, his physical transformation after being discharged was striking.
As a result, he was unable to make his Club World Cup debut until July 1, in the round of 16 clash against Juventus, where he played 20 minutes. He followed that with another 30 minutes last Saturday against Borussia Dortmund, during which he scored his first goal of the tournament—a key strike that helped Real Madrid advance.
Now the question is whether Xabi Alonso believes he’s ready to start in the semi-final against PSG, or if he’ll continue to rely on Gonzalo instead.