Ousmane Dembélé responds to Kylian Mbappé rift reports | OneFootball

Zinédine Zidane arrived at Clairefontaine as France manager for the first time last week, but whilst Zizou’s arrival was highly anticipated and naturally dominated headlines in L’Héxagone, so did a reported growing rift between two of Les Bleus’ biggest stars, Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé.

The source of the reported rift is comments made about this year’s Ballon d’Or, which will be awarded in London later this month. Mbappé, speaking to France Football, made the following comment:  “He has always been seen as a talented player; I have always been seen as the chosen one.”

Dembélé then responded through an interview with Ligue 1 Plus shortly after. “I have always been at the back of the class, working hard. In my whole career, I haven’t said a word. I have worked a lot. As I said, I was never the chosen one, but I worked and, last year, I was rewarded for a fantastic year with PSG, and this year, we will see, without pressure, calm,” said the Paris Saint-Germain forward.

At the start of the camp, it was reported that a distance had emerged between Dembélé and Mbappé, usually so close, with the publication describing the relationship as “frosty”.

Dembélé, speaking ahead of France’s UEFA Nations League match against Italy on Friday, has now spoken publicly about the reports. “I’m not going to comment on all of these stories; I don’t want to comment on them. These are little squabbles on social media. At 29 years old, I am not commenting on it. I am focused on what is happening on the pitch,” responded Dembélé, who may wear the captain’s armband in Mbappé’s absence tomorrow.

The current holder of the Ballon d’Or was then asked whether he was still friends with Mbappé, to which he responded, “We have spoken. We are next to each other on the table. There isn’t a problem.”

GFFN | Luke Entwistle