With four days to go before the match against Belgium, the French team opened their training session to the press. The team’s number 1 striker did not make a strong impression.
French journalists are spoiled compared to their Belgian counterparts: on Thursday afternoon in the still stifling heat of Paderborn, Didier Deschamps opened his session fully to the press for the fifth time since the start of the Blues’ gathering. Where the Devils were only seen once from one end of the training session to the other.
All eyes were on one man: Kylian Mbappé. A camera from L’Équipe TV was permanently trained on the new Real Madrid striker. “He just took his mask in his hands, we have to go live on air. Quick, quick,” shouted the journalist on the phone with the control room in Paris.
He keeps fiddling with his mask while playing
If he did part of the physical session with the reserves of the match against Poland on Tuesday (and Jules Koundé) without a mask, Mbappé got it back from the staff for the opposition on a half-field. Small matches under the watchful eye of Deschamps where Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann scored a hat-trick.
The impression was not as good for the most expensive player in the world (according to Transfermarkt). Mbappé kept fiddling with his mask to put it back on. And when he received the ball, he seemed not to have his eyes in front of the holes. In any case, he did almost nothing good, except for an easy finish where he over-exulted. He forced several dribbles and chained losses of the ball. Unworthy of his level.
Should we be worried about the French star? Drawing definitive conclusions from a training session is dangerous, especially at J + 2 of a match, traditionally with a lower intensity. But the mask clearly bothers Mbappé. Playing without it is not an option for the moment, despite the heat that makes the sweat drip on the edges of his protection. For the moment, it seems difficult to imagine him at 100% of his possibilities if he has to wear it against the Devils on Monday in Düsseldorf.
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