Excelsior Virton · Midfielder · #32 · France · 37 yrs
Ousmane Dembélé addressed the relentless criticism aimed at Kylian Mbappé, firmly backing his international teammate ahead of the tournament. Just days before France kicks off their 2026 World Cup campaign against Iraq, captain Kylian Mbappé has drawn heavy criticism across his country after temporarily leaving the national team camp for personal reasons—a departure that was fully authorized by the French coaching staff. Amid the brewing media storm surrounding the forward, his longtime international teammate Ousmane Dembélé stepped up to defend the Real Madrid superstar. “They have been very unfair to him. They go a bit too far with the criticism of Kylian because he is an incredible player and a great person off the pitch,” Dembélé stated in an exclusive interview with MARCA. “I’ve known him for a long time. They cross the line with the criticism simply because it’s Kylian Mbappé. People don’t need to be so harsh on him”. Mbappé has found himself in the eye of a media hurricane since before even reporting for international duty. During the final stretch of Real Madrid’s domestic season, the forward suffered a minor injury. While undergoing rehabilitation, he was spotted traveling with his partner, a move that sparked significant frustration among the demanding fan base of the Spanish giants. ⚽🏆 El Balón de Oro @dembouz se sienta con MARCA antes del debut de Les Bleus ante Senegal: Mbappé, Messi, Luis Enrique, Deschamps o Zidane, sobre la mesa, y por supuesto, España ✍️ @polomarca https://t.co/C873RrkBsV— MARCA (@marca) June 12, 2026 For Dembélé, the constant scrutiny directed at Mbappé has transcended footballing matters, crossing a line into absurd territory. “If he ties his shoelaces, if he doesn’t tie them, if he pulls up his socks, if he doesn’t… it’s just too much,” the Paris Saint-Germain winger continued. “At the end of the day, he is still a human being, as well as being a player of exceptional quality”. Dembélé defends Mbappé’s leadership role with France Rumors regarding a fractured locker room within the French national team began to surface following Les Bleus‘ shocking 2-1 friendly defeat to the Ivory Coast before the 2026 World Cup kick off. During the pre-match buildup, clip segments went viral showing an alleged tension point where veteran midfielder N’Golo Kanté and Mbappé supposedly bypassed shaking hands before stepping onto the pitch. The viral footage ignited immediate controversy, causing media outlets to question Mbappé’s standing and influence within the national team dynamic. However, Dembélé was quick to silence the speculation, emphasizing that Mbappé remains an exemplary leader who commands total respect from the locker room. “Here in the French national team, he gets along great with all of us. He is a leader, the captain of our team, and an incredibly important player for what we want to achieve,” Dembélé concluded. As France prepares to begin their quest for a third global title, Didier Deschamps and his squad are actively closing ranks, choosing to ignore the outside noise as their captain prepares to rejoin the group ahead of the opening whistle.
France star Ousmane Dembele spoke about Lionel Messi ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. France have the task this summer of matching their performances from the last two editions of the FIFA World Cup and competing for the title once again. Ousmane Dembele is confident in his team’s chances, but he is not overlooking other contenders, including Lionel Messi’s Argentina. During an interview with Marca, Dembele was asked whether he believed Messi could win another World Cup. “Of course, he can win every trophy possible. I already saw it in Barcelona,” began the winger, who played alongside Leo for four seasons with the Spanish club between 2017 and 2021. The Paris Saint-Germain star then pushed back against those who believe Messi is no longer capable of competing at the highest level because of his age. “That changes nothing… He is the best I have ever seen, the best the game has ever seen. He is still dangerous,” said Ousmane. “It’s difficult to stop him even at 38 years old. He may be that age, but he will always have those qualities. We’ll have to be careful with him because he is capable of winning again,” added Dembele, who experienced Messi’s brilliance firsthand in the Qatar 2022 final, where Argentina defeated France on penalties after a 3-3 draw. Dembele and Messi playing for Barcelona in 2018. Dembele names his favorites to win the 2026 World Cup In the same interview, Ousmane Dembele was asked about France‘s chances of competing for the trophy once again. “We know that the French national team has reached the final in each of the last two editions. So we’ll be a team with high expectations,” began the winger. “But we remain focused on the objective. Before thinking about reaching the Round of 16 or the quarterfinals, you first have to get through the group-stage matches.” He then shared his thoughts on Spain, whom many consider the other major favorite. “They are an exceptional team collectively and have very good players… They have been playing this way for years and years, with players of the highest level,” said Ousmane. “In Spain, possession is something that comes naturally to them.” However, Dembele made it clear that the race for the title will not necessarily come down to those two teams. “There are many teams that are favorites in this competition… Spain, having just won the European Championship, are certainly one of the favorites. But there are also Argentina, the reigning world champions, Germany, Portugal and England. They are all great national teams,” explained the current Ballon d’Or winner. “That said, we’ll also have to be careful with the teams that are considered less likely to win.”
Of the dozens of players he has had the chance to play with since the start of his career, Ousmane Dembélé (29) is in no doubt: Lionel Messi (38) is without question the best of them all. That’s w...
Ousmane Dembele has reflected on one of the biggest decisions of his career, admitting that leaving Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain was the right move despite his deep connection to the Catalan club...
With Ousmane Dembele reportedly demanding him more defensive effort, Kylian Mbappe's exit from France's camp drew criticism among fans. The 2026 World Cup has not even started, and Kylian Mbappe is already generating friction within the France national team, and not because of anything that has happened on the pitch. Reports have surfaced claiming that Ousmane Dembele confronted him about his defensive effort, and Mbappe’s decision to leave the team’s training camp on the final day has sparked further discontent among supporters. France‘s last pre-tournament friendly came against Northern Ireland at the Decathlon Arena in Lille, a match designed in part as a farewell to the home fans ahead of the trip to North America. While Mbappe featured in the game, his departure from the training camp just hours after the final whistle drew scrutiny once it became public. The exit itself had been authorized by the federation, as Mbappe had personal matters to attend to, but the discomfort only grew when images began circulating on social media showing him in Madrid with his girlfriend, Ester Esposito. To many French supporters, the timing, coming so close to the team’s departure for the World Cup, read as a signal of misplaced priorities. The episode adds fuel to a controversy that had already been building following a report from L’Equipe, which claimed that Dembele confronted Mbappe in the locker room, urging him to take a more active role in pressing and ball recovery. The conversation reignited the long-running debate surrounding Mbappe’s commitment to the defensive phase, a part of the game that has never been a hallmark of his style, particularly in contrast to his former PSG teammate. A feud between Mbappe and Kante? Beyond the Dembele episode and his post-camp excursion, the atmosphere within France’s dressing room has raised further eyebrows. One moment in particular went viral after footage captured what appeared to be a noticeably cold exchange between Mbappe and N’Golo Kante. Mais les gars il se passe quoi entre Mbappé et Kanté, pourquoi ils s’évitent comme ça ??????Pour réussir à se mettre N’Golo à dos il faut le faire quand même pic.twitter.com/GxEPqzkDfR— 𝔇𝔧𝔦𝔟𝔦𝔫𝔥𝔬 🇨🇷 (@DjibinhoPvris_) June 5, 2026 In the tunnel before taking the field against Ivory Coast, Kante was seen warmly greeting every player in the squad, but when he reached Mbappe, both men visibly looked away from each other, with no handshake or acknowledgment exchanged. One reported source of the tension dates back to March 29, 2026, during the France vs. Colombia match, when Kante, wearing the captain’s armband for the first time on his birthday, was asked to hand it over when Mbappe entered the field with roughly ten minutes remaining. France takes off to the United States Despite the turbulence surrounding their captain, France have departed for the United States and are preparing to make their presence felt at the 2026 World Cup. The squad flew out of Le Bourget airport near Paris, and after an eight-hour flight, Les Bleus are landing in Boston on Wednesday night, which will serve as their base of operations throughout the tournament. Following a 2-1 defeat against Ivory Coast and a 3-1 victory over Northern Ireland in their warm-up games, France open their World Cup campaign on Tuesday, June 16, against Sadio Mane’s Senegal in Group I. With Iraq and Erling Haaland’s Norway also in the group, Deschamps will need the best version of Mbappe to navigate what is widely considered the most difficult group of the tournament.
Didier Deschamps will call time on his France tenure after the World Cup, and Ousmane Dembele wants to give him a winning send off. The post Dembele: Deschamps’ looming exit will not affect France’s World Cup bid appeared first on SoccerNews.
Having taken an early lead in the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain through Kai Havertz, Arsenal conceded an equalizer to Ousmane Dembele from the spot, and eventually suffered a cruel defeat in a penalty shootout. Midfielder Declan Rice said he and his teammates were “gutted” to lose such a game in that way. 💬 […] The post “It’s devastating to lose the Champions League final on penalties” – Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice (Video) appeared first on Soccer News.
