Kylian Mbappé during France-Ukraine, March 24, 2021 at Stade de France.

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FRANCK FIFE / AFP

He knows it, and he's already used to it.

Every time he makes an average match, we tend to fall on Kylian Mbappé.

It's like that when you are more talented than others and when you ask for responsibilities.

Wednesday evening, against Ukraine (1-1), the striker of the France team never weighed on the debates, while the Blues were counting on his dribbling and his thrusts to destabilize a very strong defense. grouped together.

“Kylian himself knows he didn't play his best game.

I will speak to him quietly, relativizes Didier Deschamps.

I'm not going to focus any more, although you expect a lot from him.

He was not in the best conditions, maybe he did not have good feelings either, even if he is always able, in a flash, an action, to make the differences.

"

But it was Coman who came out ...

Of differences, he made none or almost none on his left side then in the axis, after the exit of Olivier Giroud.

In this area, Mbappé suffered from the comparison with Kingsley Coman, aligned on the right and who made a very bad evening for his direct opponent.

Yet it was the Munich player who came out on time. And Andrei Shevchenko was able to continue to apply his plan.

“We studied our opponent.

And our friendly match last year gave us information, that open play was a bit suicidal against them, with a player like Mbappé, who attacks space very well and quickly changes the course of the game, underlined the Ukrainian coach after the meeting.

So we put more players in front of him to close his side.

One had to put pressure on him, the other to close the space.

This plan worked and the credit goes to the players.

"

Two games to catch up

The biggest regret of Deschamps, finally, is that the Blues have not managed to take advantage of this special attention on the Parisian to find spaces elsewhere.

“With the quality he has, I understand that the opponent is making arrangements.

When he had the ball there were often two, three on him.

But normally there are supposed to be less on others, you have to know how to take advantage of that too, ”notes DD.

Giroud, too static, did not help much.

Griezmann and Rabiot, supposed to play around him, quickly declined after a good start to the match.

And the entrants have not done better, in a match that has never settled.

Too bad for this time.

Two new qualifying matches arrive very quickly, Sunday then Wednesday.

Mbappé will surely start the first on the bench, but he will have ample opportunity to erase his performance on Wednesday.

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  • Didier Deschamps

  • Sport

  • Soccer

  • Kylian Mbappé

  • French football team