Has the king lost his crown?
Since Kylian Mbappé announced to his managers and teammates that he would leave PSG at the end of the season, the Parisian striker has seen his status change in the blink of an eye.
Suddenly reduced to the rank of an average player, the captain of the Blues, a star player, apart, who we normally take care to cuddle, has seen his playing time reduce considerably for several matches.
Substitute at the kick-off in Nantes, then left at the hour mark against Rennes, he did not even last more than one half, this Friday, in Monaco (0-0) being replaced from the return from the locker room by Randal Kolo Muani.
Like last week, Luis Enrique gave no explanation in the locker room.
In front of everyone, he simply announced his decision to remove the one who wore the armband at the Louis-II stadium.
Surreal, the scene risks fueling a little more speculation around the case of number 7. A new coup which did not give rise to many comments, neither from the coach, nor from the players , at the end of the meeting.
At a press conference, Luis Enrique was invited to explain himself but the answer to the three questions concerning Mbappé preserved a certain mystery.
“It’s 100% a coach’s decision.
I think that, sooner or later, we have to get used to playing without Kylian Mbappé, he first stated, as he had already done after Rennes.
It's my decision and it's a decision that I make with the objective, in my opinion, of obtaining the best for the team.
»
Rebelote immediately: “I’m not going to get into that game.
I am a professional and I have already responded to your colleague and I continue to respond in the same way: there is no problem, for me it is just a question of management and the way In my opinion, I manage the team as best as possible.
» Finally, he chose to rely on irony to extinguish any debate at the end of this evening which will definitely not appease the spirits.
“Three questions on the same subject are a triple
!
I have scored hat-tricks in my career and even more during matches, sometimes in the Champions League.
So it's the same answer as before.
One day, I scored four goals against Athletic Club de Bilbao, but one was ruled out.
»
“He came out at half-time, I don’t know anything more”
We would be very naive to imagine for a single moment that Luis Enrique did not expect this barrage of questions about his star player.
Even less so when the latter, in the eyes of everyone, took a lap of honor upon returning from the locker room to go and sit in the stands alongside his mother, while his natural place should have been on the bench, with the others.
When Mbappé took the athletics track which leads to the stands, time seemed to stop for two minutes.
Inside the Louis-II stadium, no one was watching the match anymore, the show was elsewhere.
With his black tracksuit and his cap screwed on his head, the Prince of Bondy did his lap of honor, greeting the assembly on the bend before stopping to offer a wonderful selfie to a hostess who would have done well to try his luck.
Lunar, improbable.
At the same time, the game continued with total indifference.
The broadcaster's footage also captured him smiling with the same grin he had as he left the stadium.
Kylian #Mbappé is not returning to the bench.
The striker has changed and will sit in the stands to watch the 2nd half.
On the road, he takes the time to greet the public, cap screwed on his head, and even takes a little selfie.
#ASMPSG pic.twitter.com/O32UBeTF1j
— Benjamin Quarez (@B_Quarez) March 1, 2024
Because it was with a smile that the “Kyks” crossed the mixed zone, letting out a light “good evening”, a rhythmic step, before returning to the parking lot.
As for the players, only Carlos Soler was sent to the fire and while we didn't expect anything, it didn't go amiss.
“What happened with Mbappé?
He came out at half-time, I don’t know anything more,” said the Spaniard laconically.
Always, as soon as it concerns Mbappé, all precautions are taken at the club to avoid making waves.
The players are briefed, know that they have no interest in adding more, and that was not their desire at the end of this match in Monaco.
Later in the night, we tried to play down the obvious with this slogan: “there is no breaking point”.
Four days before a Champions League round of 16 second leg against Real Sociedad, there was surely a better way to prepare for a crucial deadline for an entire club.