Kylian Mbappe shocks Real Madrid teammates as he decides he can not play vs Barcelona
Kylian Mbappe will not be part of the Real Madrid squad for the El Clasico clash with Barcelona
Kylian Mbappe will not be part of the Real Madrid squad vs Barcelona.(Image: Jose Luis Contreras/NurPhoto)
Kylian Mbappe will be absent from the Real Madrid squad facing Barcelona at the Nou Camp this evening, after suffering a setback during training.
According to reports from Marca, the 25-year-old ‘stunned his team-mates’ towards the conclusion of their final training session on Saturday ahead of El Clasico.
The France striker experienced discomfort in his hamstring before declaring he could not carry on and departed the training ground. Mbappe has been managing a hamstring problem in the build-up to the fixture and it now appears he’ll miss tonight’s encounter.
There had been optimism that he would be considered fit enough to participate in the crucial showdown with Real’s bitter rivals this weekend, with anything short of victory against Barcelona handing Hansi Flick’s team the championship.
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Mbappe has faced harsh criticism from Los Blancos supporters in recent weeks, after seemingly going on holiday with his new partner during his injury recovery period.
Representatives of the French international were compelled to issue a statement, which read: “Part of the criticism is based on an over-interpretation of elements related to a recovery period strictly supervised by the club, without reflecting the reality of Kylian’s commitment and the work he puts in every day for the team.”
Real Madrid supporters were left fuming and slammed Mbappe for not taking his rehabilitation seriously, with the club teetering on the edge of a second consecutive campaign without silverware.
It’s been a turbulent fortnight for Real following reports that Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni were embroiled in a dressing room altercation before the showdown with Barca.
Valverde allegedly lost consciousness and sustained a head injury before being rushed to hospital, with both players hit with €500,000 fines for their involvement in the fracas.
Neither Mbappe nor Valverde featured in the Real Madrid matchday squad, with Los Blancos manager Alvaro Arbeloa standing by both the Uruguayan and Tchouameni during his media briefing.
He said: “What I’m not going to do is publicly crucify them, because they don’t deserve it. They’ve shown me what it means to be a Real Madrid player over these past four months and years.
“They’ve demonstrated what it means to be a Real Madrid player, and I won’t forget that. These two players deserve for us to turn the page, to give them an opportunity to keep fighting for this club.
“I’m not going to allow this to be used to question their professionalism, it’s a lie that they’re unprofessional, that they’re not playing because of problems with me, and that they’ve disrespected me, it’s absolutely false.
“I’m the one ultimately responsible for the fact that we probably haven’t lived up to expectations this season. If you want to point the finger at someone, here I am.”
Arbeloa also found himself defending Mbappe, and said: “For a player to leave training smiling is taking things out of context and making them seem out of place. In Mbappe’s case, we all know the effort he made to come to Madrid and what he gave up. We’ve all seen him in a Madrid tracksuit as a kid.
“I feel completely within the authority of a Madrid coach, ultimately, they’re respecting the current coach, and as a player, that’s the most important thing.”
