As France gets ready to face Belgium in the Euro 2024 round of 16 on Monday, star man Kylian Mbappé is still struggling to get used to the protective equipment he has to wear.
For the second match in a row, Mbappé will be wearing a mask when he takes to the pitch and the 25-year-old has described playing in it as “horrible.” So why is he wearing one?
What happened?
During France’s narrow 1-0 win over Austria in the team’s opening match at Euro 2024 on June 17, Mbappé inadvertently headbutted the shoulder of Austrian defender Kevin Danso when challenging for the ball in the closing minutes.
The French Football Federation (FFF) later confirmed that Mbappé, who is set to join Real Madrid on a free transfer, suffered a broken nose and would need to wear a mask to continue playing at the tournament.
The FFF said Mbappé wouldn’t need to undergo immediate surgery and the World Cup winner later asked for ideas for his mask on X, formerly Twitter.
Mbappé subsequently missed the second group match against the Netherlands, a 0-0 draw, before returning to the team to score in France’s 1-1 draw with Poland.
What did Mbappé say?
Speaking to reporters on Sunday ahead of the clash against Belgium, Mbappé said playing in the mask is “horrible.”
“When I took the blow to the face, I didn’t really know what was going on,” Mbappé said. “I didn’t feel that my nose was broken, it was actually when I looked at the goalkeeper and I saw his face that I thought: ‘Oh, something is wrong here.’
“However, when I got back to the dressing room and knew everything that happened around me, I thought I was going home. I looked at myself in the mirror and I thought that it was a bad idea to send me home.
Mbappé wore the mask against Poland. Ina Fassbender/AFP/Getty Images
“But I’m happy to be here. It was difficult because there was a lot of information, a lot of appointments, I didn’t really sleep that much – I spent two nights without sleeping – I was trying to go through all the motions, but I wasn’t able to play against the Netherlands and that was really difficult to sit on the bench … I felt quite helpless.”
Mbappé added that if he needed to head the ball to score a goal, he would do it. “My nose is already broken, what more can happen?” he joked.
The forward was later asked why he had changed his mask multiple times since first being fitted with one.
“It’s horrible playing with a mask,” Mbappé replied. “I keep changing masks because every time there is something that bothers me, there’s something that’s not quite right. It’s quite difficult playing with a mask because it limits your field of vision, your sweat clogs up and you need to let the sweat out.
“The first few days I felt like I was wearing 3D glasses and it wasn’t me who was playing. If I get to take the mask off I will, but now I don’t have a choice. I hate it. It’s really annoying. I’ve had to change it five times.”
What does this mean for France’s hopes?
Mbappé being at his absolute best is huge for France’s hopes not just in the last 16 against Belgium, but for the tournament as a whole.
Widely regarded as one of the best players in the world, Mbappé has scored 48 goals in 81 appearances for France and helped lead the team to glory at the 2018 World Cup.
France entered Euro 2024 as one of the favorites but, like most other big nations at the tournament, has failed to impress so far.
Under head coach Didier Deschamps, France has won a World Cup, the Nations League, reached another World Cup final and also the Euro 2016 final.
