France captain Kylian Mbappe (25) is under fire in his own country for missing Les Bleus' Nations League games against Israel and Belgium while available to play for Real Madrid.
The attacker had a muscular injury last month but returned to the pitch in the Champions League last Wednesday and featuring in the last La Liga match against Villareal,where madrid won by two goals to nill.
Goals scored by Fede valverde and Vinicius Junior .
Didier Deschamps, France's coach, kept Mbappe out of the squad he unveiled on Thursday, citing a lack of preparation and insufficient playing time.
Mbappe started Real's La Liga match against Villarreal on Saturday where he lasted for seventy one minutes before been replaced by Rodrygo Goes.
"Either you're injured, you don't play with your club, and you're not called up to the national team," former France international Maxime Bossis told French sports newspaper L'Equipe on Monday.
However, coming off the bench in the Champions League and starting a league game can be confusing. He is a fantastic player. We knew that with Michel Platini, when we still wanted him with us despite his injury."
Mbappe's predicament is compounded by the fact that he is the national team captain, having been appointed ahead of Antoine Griezmann, who announced his retirement from international football last week.
Griezmann's dedication to Les Bleus was undeniable, as the Atletico Madrid attacker appeared in 84 consecutive matches for France between 2017 and 2024 before hanging his football boots this year.
"As a captain, (Mbappe) must set an example for the fans, which he has not done," Fabien Bonnet, spokeswoman for the Irresistibles Francais, the biggest France supporters' group, told L'Equipe.
What emerges is that the genuine captain, Antoine Griezmann, has left."France, which is second in Group A, will face Israel in Budapest on Thursday before going to Belgium on Monday.
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