Euro 2020 - French stars unhappy with 'sulking' Kylian Mbappe who was 'jealous' of Antoine Griezmann at tournament
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Published 02/07/2021 at 12:55 GMT
Kylian Mbappe's demeanour at Euro 2020 annoyed his team-mates with some French players saying the forward was 'sulking' for much of the tournament. The fall-out from France's shock exit is continuing and reports in France claim Mbappe was 'jealous' of Antoine Griezmann at the tournament and his 'sulking' irked the squad.
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Kylian Mbappe was ‘jealous’ of Antoine Griezmann and irked his France team-mates with his continuous ‘sulking’ during Euro 2020.
That is according to French media as the fall-out from France’s early exit from Euro 2020 continues.
France were dumped out of the tournament in dramatic fashion by Switzerland in the last-16 after blowing a two-goal lead and then losing on penalties.
The spotlight has firmly fallen on Mbappe, who missed the crucial penalty and performed below his own scintillating standards at Euro 2020.
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After reports there was a bust-up between Paul Pogba, Adrien Rabiot and Mbappe’s families in the stands after the Switzerland game, further claims are emerging from the France camp.
L’Equipe claim Mbappe and Griezmann’s relationship has been ‘far from friendly’ in recent months and there are even suggestions the Paris Saint-Germain star was jealous of his team-mate.
Mbappe was unsettled by Griezmann’s influence in the French squad having been a crucial performer in his country’s 2018 World Cup triumph.
The attacking duo also didn’t see eye-to-eye over Karim Benzema’s highly anticipated return to the squad.
Benzema was selected for Euro 2020 after a five-year exile and Mbappe was delighted to welcome the Real Madrid star back.
Griezmann was not so pleased and would have preferred he remained out in the cold, although Benzema was excellent at Euro 2020.
Mbappe’s attitude also appears to have annoyed his team-mates, including goalkeepers Hugo Lloris and Steve Mandanda, after he fell out with Olivier Giroud.
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France's forward Kylian Mbappe (L) and France's forward Antoine Griezmann walk out onto the pitch for the UEFA EURO 2020 round of 16 football match between France and Switzerland at the National Arena in Bucharest on June 28, 2021
Image credit: Getty Images
Before Euro 2020 Giroud insisted his team-mates had to pass to him more often and Mbappe was reportedly so upset at the comments he wanted to publicly respond.
French players think Mbappe then began ‘sulking’, much to the displeasure of his team-mates, but Didier Deschamps was quick to defend his star man after the penalty shoot-out miss.
He said: “Nobody can be annoyed with him. When you take the responsibility, it can happen. He is obviously very affected by it.”
Mbappe apologised himself after the game, saying: “I’m sorry about this penalty. I wanted to help the team but I failed.
“It’s going to be hard to sleep after this, but unfortunately these are the ups and downs of this sport that I love so much.
The most important (thing) will be to get back up again even stronger for future commitments. Congratulations and good luck to the Swiss team.
There appear to have been a host of issues going on behind the scenes in the French camp as they were hit hard by Ousmane Dembele’s injury and withdrawal from the squad and were unhappy with the standard of accommodation at the tournament.
While there were rows in the stands, there was also arguments on the pitch as Rabiot and Varane confronted Pogba about his defensive contributions.
France were leading 3-1 before Haris Seferovic sparked an epic comeback in the 81st minute. The French never recovered from the sudden collapse and were eventually beaten on penalties.
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