France: Kylian Mbappé remains captain of Les Bleus, confirms Zinédine Zidane

Zinédine Zidane confirmed on Friday, September 18, that Kylian Mbappé would retain the France captain’s armband. The new Les Bleus head coach made the announcement during the press conference held after the presentation of his first squad.

The captaincy was among the first decisions expected from Zinédine Zidane since his appointment at the helm of Les Bleus. The new head coach confirmed that he intended to keep Kylian Mbappé in the role.

“Yes, Kylian will be my new player and he will be my captain,” declared Zinédine Zidane

The Real Madrid forward has worn the armband since March 2023, when he was chosen by Didier Deschamps to succeed Hugo Lloris. Mbappé now has 106 caps for France.

The decision comes as Zidane unveils his first squad since taking charge. The head coach has selected 23 players for this international window, which will mark the beginning of his tenure on the Les Bleus bench.

Read also: Real Madrid: Kylian Mbappé has been decisive 600 times in his career

Zidane does not want to enter the Ballon d’Or debate

The Ballon d’Or was also discussed during the press conference. Kylian Mbappé is among the candidates for the award, as is his France teammate Ousmane Dembélé.

Zidane chose not to take a position in the debate surrounding the individual award. He acknowledged that discussions were taking place around the Ballon d’Or, while indicating that he did not want to “get into that”.

The new head coach will now prepare his first fixtures with his squad. Les Bleus will begin their Nations League campaign in Turkey on September 25, before travelling to Belgium on September 28. They will then host Italy on October 2 and Belgium on October 5.

Nouya M'toama

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Versatile journalist specializing in sports and political news, with extensive experience across radio, print and digital media platforms.

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