France: between Zidane and Mbappé, a relationship still to be built

Mbappé misses Italy match with hamstring injury, his fourth consecutive absence; Zidane says precaution is needed as the relationship between manager and captain continues to develop.

Kylian Mbappé has been ruled out of France's Nations League match against Italy on Thursday evening due to a hamstring injury, marking his fourth consecutive absence under Zinédine Zidane. The pair's collaboration has been limited to just 59 minutes in Turkey, where Mbappé appeared uncomfortable playing on the left wing before a knee issue forced his substitution.

Zidane emphasized a precautionary approach on Wednesday, stating: "When you have a feeling, you can't take any risk because the season is long. I hope it's nothing serious and we can have him on Sunday." The manager added that Mbappé's morale is good and that he remained with the squad because he wants to play in the next fixture.

According to sources close to Mbappé, the relationship between the two personalities is still developing and requires time to build. There has been no visible warmth between them in open training sessions. Tactically, Zidane initially insisted on deploying Mbappé on the left, though the player's body language suggested discomfort with that positioning.

Zidane later clarified that Mbappé would play in his preferred central striker role during this camp. Questions also remain about Mbappé's integration into the squad dynamic, with some observers noting he appeared isolated during the September gathering, though his entourage disputes this characterization.