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WHAT HAPPENED?
France centre-back Dayot Upamecano has urged everyone to show a bit more support to forward Kylian Mbappe following his expulsion by Didier Deschamps from the squad for this month’s international games in the Nations League. The Bayern Munich defender’s backing of Mbappe isn’t the first of his kind, as several other players have recently shown support for the French superstar.
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GettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE
Mbappe found himself in the middle of controversy following Deschamps’ decision to leave him out for France’s games against Israel and Belgium last month, owing to fitness concerns. Furthermore, Deschamps admitted it would be “better like this”, speaking with respect to his decision to snub him for this month’s international fixtures for the second successive time.
French media have been particularly harsh with the former PSG superstar, prompting Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate to publicly back the player, admitting that all the spotlight and media scrutiny can be tough to deal with on a constant basis.
Upamecano echoed his defensive partner’s sentiments while speaking to reporters on international duty with France.
WHAT DAYOT UPAMECANO SAID
“There is no concern, but we cannot forget what Kylian has done for this team and we miss a bit of support for him. We must not forget that he is our captain and I hope he will be back with us soon,” Upamecano told reporters (h/t MARCA).
“There are a lot of games and I said that at the start of the season. We are human beings and the mental aspect counts a lot for us. I’m not going to go into those details, but as I said before he is our captain and I hope he will be with us soon. He is very important for us.
“He’s a friend, a super player and I know what he’s capable of. I hope he comes back and when he’s here I hope he wears the armband.”
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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR FRANCE?
France will be facing Israel and Italy in their upcoming UEFA Nations League A Group 2 group stage fixtures with the aim of capturing top spot from the Azzurri, who have one more point after four games.
