Kylian Mbappe was one of the notable absences from Real Madrid‘s starting lineup for the derby against Atletico Madrid, raising questions once again about his fitness. After the match, and especially with France national team friendlies on the horizon, Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa acknowledged that Mbappe was not “100% fit.”
In a game that could have defined the La Liga title race, Real Madrid hosted Atletico on Sunday for Matchday 29. Los Blancos found their solutions through Federico Valverde and then Vinicius, who scored a brace in a 3-2 win, with Mbappe a spectator until the second half, when he finally entered the pitch in the 64th minute.
Asked about his team selection in the post-match press conference, Arbeloa shed some light on his reasoning: “Every day I try to field the best XI to face the opponent in front of us. When you have the best in the world, you try to make the most of him and have him on the pitch as much as possible.“
The Madrid coach then addressed Mbappe’s fitness after the forward’s return from a knee sprain. “I believe that after three weeks, nearly a month, that Mbappe has been out, the normal thing to do is to progress gradually. That is what I prefer and what I understand is best for him and for the team: having players who are at 100% fitness,” Arbeloa stated.
Referee Jose Munuera speaks with Kylian Mbappe of Real Madrid.
After playing 26 minutes in the derby, Arbeloa expressed confidence that the star would benefit from his time with Les Bleus: “Kylian put in some very good minutes; he was a constant threat, just like he was the other day, so I’m sure that with his national team he’ll be able to get more minutes and return even more prepared.“
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Will Mbappe feature with the national team?
On Thursday, head coach Didier Deschamps announced the France squad for friendlies against Colombia and Brazil in the United States, with Kylian Mbappe headlining the list. The news came as a surprise to Real Madrid, given that the striker had sat out several games over the previous weeks.
Since missing the second leg of the Champions League playoff against Benfica on February 25, Mbappe had been absent for five games across all competitions before making his return against Manchester City. Even so, he has been far from his best (47 minutes), prompting questions about whether it might be preferable for him to rest during the March international window, especially with the Champions League quarterfinals against Bayern Munich just two weeks away.
France will face Brazil first on March 26, and then Colombia on March 29, with Mbappe also within striking distance of becoming his country’s all-time leading scorer, sitting just two goals behind Olivier Giroud’s record of 57, one more motivation for the forward to perform despite not being fully fit.
“We will see what happens this weekend against Atletico de Madrid, how he feels, and based on that, our intention is for every player called up to get some minutes, since we are playing two matches in three days,” said Deschamps, suggesting Mbappe is likely to feature, adding that he had not called him up “for marketing.“
