Why Kylian Mbappe's mask could be a huge problem for France at Euro 2024

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
The French captain has been struggling with a broken nose since the group stages

One thing Batman does not get enough credit for is his depth perception. There he goes, hurtling around the mean streets of Gotham in the dead of night, thwonking goons and foiling cosplaying psychopaths, vision obscured by a needlessly melodramatic latex cowl, and not once do we ever see him misjudging an uppercut or scraping the alloys of the Batmobile off a high kerb. In fact, the Caped Crusader almost makes wearing a mask while going about one’s usual business look decidedly easy. But it is not. Just ask Kylian Mbappe.

Sometimes an athlete will commemorate their appearance at a major international sporting event with a tattoo - the Olympic rings on their rib cage, or a World Cup tucked beneath the sock on a calf. The French captain has instead memorialised his turn at Euro 2024 by sculpting the bridge of his nose into a fleshy interpretation of one of the great looping meanders of the Seine.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Since colliding with Austrian defender Kevin Danso like a Looney Tunes antagonist hitting a tunnel painted onto a red brick wall, Mbappe has not quite looked himself. And not just because he now has the appearance of somebody subjected to rhinoplasty courtesy of a cartoon frying pan.

There is a trepidation to his game, an uncharacteristic hesitation that feels somewhat alien when embodied by a player who usually goes at defenders like a diamond-tipped angle grinder slicing through a cheesecake. Against Poland, he had to rely on a spot kick to open his account at the tournament. On Monday evening, in a knockout clash against Belgium that was so drab he might well have been forgiven for switching his protective mask for a sleep mask at half-time, Mbappe seemed off-kilter, reduced to busy work on the periphery and wild slashes at goal from distance.

In one particularly telling moment, picked up on scrupulously by Ally McCoist in the gantry, the Real Madrid forward watched a beguiling lofted pass sail straight over his head and out of play rather than attacking it at the far post. Impassivity has never looked so wincing.

There are other signs too. Mbappe himself has described playing in his new accessory as ‘horrible’, and has admitted that at times he feels as if he is taking to the field in 3D glasses. ‘I hate it,’ he bluntly told a press conference last week. Already he has changed the exact specifications of his mask five times, and it is a common occurrence to see him fiddling with some aspect of it or other during matches; cinching the elastic strap here, shifting the eye holes every so slightly there. His vibe is distinctly that of a dog wearing a plastic cone after being neutered.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

And Mbappe’s problem is very much France’s writ large. Didier Deschamps’ side, having booked their place in a quarter-final tussle with Portugal on Monday, are yet to properly spark, let alone ignite. Two of the three goals they have scored in Germany thus far have come from opponents putting the ball into their own net, and the third was that aforementioned penalty in a lacklustre draw against the Poles.

What they need more than anything is for their talisman to inspire with his customary wizardry. Instead, he is playing like a man trapped behind perspex. Unless Mbappe can learn to adapt to life in the mask, France could be in trouble.

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.

Follow us
©National World Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.Cookie SettingsTerms and ConditionsPrivacy notice