Even though French national soccer team captain Kylian Mbappe was absent due to injury, his team played.
Furthermore, he was seen at a nightclub on the day of the national team match.
French media “Foot Mercato” reported on the 12th (Korea time) that Mbappe, who played in Real Madrid after missing the French national team, was seen visiting a nightclub in Stockholm, Sweden, during the A-match.
On the same day, Swedish media Aftonbladet released a photo of Mbappe spending time at a restaurant in Stockholm on Thursday night and heading to a nightclub.
At the time, the French national soccer team was playing the third match of Group A of the UEFA Nations League in 2024-2025 against Israel at the Bosque Arena in Budapest, Hungary.
The problem is that Mbappe reportedly announced that he would stay in Madrid and recover his injury while missing the French national team.
“He looked a little guilty. He was granted leave to Real,” the media said. “He arrived in Stockholm on a chartered flight on Wednesday and had a good dinner with former PSG teammate Nordi Mukiele. The Mbappe and his party spent time in a nightclub after the meal.”
He continued, “Mbappe tried to keep his visit as secret as possible. He wore a hat and a mask to keep it as secret as possible. According to local media, Mbappe was strictly prohibited from using his phone when dancing in a nightclub. All guests had to put their phones in envelopes at the entrance.”
“After spending three days in Sweden, Mbappe left on Friday afternoon. When he left, he waved to local journalists and made no secret of himself, and headed to Ajaccio on the island of Corsica,” the media added.
Mbappe, the captain of the French national soccer team and a world-renowned striker, was not called up to the national team during the A-match period in October. He suffered a injury in the seventh round of the Spanish La Liga in the 2024-25 season against Alaves on April 25.
Although he is not seriously injured, he will reportedly have to rest for about three weeks. When announcing the list of players on Thursday, the French national team decided not to force Mbappe who is recovering from his injury.
However, despite the injury, Mbappe surprised everyone by taking only the eighth round of La Liga off against Atletico Madrid and starting the ninth round home game against Villarreal.
The media claimed that Mbappe appeared to intentionally refuse to be assigned to the French national team.
The media said, “Mbappe has already publicly said that he will not attend the A-match call-up in October, and France knew this.” The reason why Mbappe refused to play the French A-match while playing Real was because he was aiming for the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
“Given the injuries that have occurred in Europe in recent weeks, Mbappe seems to be more cautious not to be injured,” he said. “With the 2025 Ballon d’Or as his top priority, he seems to want to play only important games for the French national team.”
Of course, there were many injured this season. The UEFA Euro 2024 and the CONMEBOL Copa America this summer, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup in January, and the African Football Confederation (CAF) Nations Cup were all held, making it difficult for players to rest properly.
As a result, major players such as Son Heung-min and Rodri have been injured and left. Mbappe also seems to be trying to avoid this situation.
However, if Mbappe, who replaced Antoine Griezmann who retired from the French national team as 꽁머니, shows an attitude to focus only on his performance in his team without paying attention to responsibility to the national team, it will be pointed out that he lacks respect for the national team. Moreover, if he is a captain.
However, Wesley Fofana, a teammate of the national team, defended Mbappe’s trip to a nightclub on Wednesday. “People can do whatever they want in their free time,” he said. “He did what he wanted. He’s a great guy and a great professional. Are we asking too much? I don’t know. He’s the best French player. It’s common for him to be open to the public.”