If it had been up to him, Kylian Mbappé would have reacted publicly on Saturday to the last words of Noël Le Graët, the president of the French Football Federation (FFF), concerning him.
In an interview with L'Équipe, the latter returned to the non-participation of the Parisian striker in commercial operations of the France team, during the last gathering in Clairefontaine in March.
His two-step response particularly annoyed Mbappé and his entourage.
Noël Le Graët first mentioned the moment when the player stayed in his room rather than joining the shooting and video sessions for certain partner brands.
“I had him on the phone and I thought at one point that he was going to go down, he says.
But he surely had his lawyer with another telephone… As a result, he didn't come down.
In this case, what makes me happy is that I gathered the other players in Marseille
(for France-Côte d'Ivoire, March 25)
to find out what they thought.
Then, in Lille
(for France-South Africa, March 29)
, Hugo Lloris, on behalf of my friends, came to see me to tell me:
Don't change anything.
There must be perfect equality of bonuses between the players.
It lasted ten minutes.
Regarding Mbappé, I will soon meet his lawyer to discuss.
»
Relaunched to know the subject of these discussions, the president of the FFF then launches: “If he does not accept the operation, he will not have money, that is all.
The players have 30% of what Fifa gives.
Lloris is a respectable man.
Varane, too, said to me: President, we don't want to change.
Perfect equality.
We're not talking about money.
For his lawyer, the contracts with the players were supposedly obsolete.
It's not true.
But, I repeat, what reassures me is the general attitude of the players.
(…) Football is not an individual sport.
»
The next few weeks will be hot
In March, the representatives of Kylian Mbappé had denied any desire for "rebellion" of their protege, while, for many months, they have been calling for a fundamental reorganization of the agreement which governs the rights and obligations of the players selected in France team, deeming it unbalanced and too favorable to the institution at the expense of the player.
They also recalled that "since his arrival in the France team, Kylian Mbappé has systematically donated all of his image rights bonuses to various charities".
Read alsoImage rights, targeted sponsors and tolerance of the FFF … Mbappé, the underside of a landmark boycott
Le Graët's words made Mbappé jump, who does not appreciate that he is attributed with the sole desire to question the egalitarian distribution system of bonuses, nor that he is made to pass for a player who would be remotely controlled by those around him and unable to decide on his own actions.
Finally, the timing of this media outing by the president of the FFF also tensed the Parisian and his relatives, while meetings between all the parties were planned soon, and four matches of the Blues in the League of Nations are looming (the 3, June 6, 10 and 13).
The next few weeks therefore promise to be hot for Mbappé and his family and not only because of the choice concerning his future in the club.
