Mbappe: I was always the chosen one.. a France star hits back and reveals the truth before the Ballon d’Or

The atmosphere inside the France camp is not as calm as it looks in front of the cameras. A single sentence from Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappé was enough to spark a silent war of words with one of his most prominent teammates, just weeks before the Ballon d’Or ceremony.

A comment some described as arrogant, a reply loaded with hidden messages, and a relationship labelled “frosty” at the start of the first camp under a new coach, before the other man finally stepped forward to reveal the truth about what is going on between them.

It all began when Mbappé was asked by France Football about Ousmane Dembélé winning the Ballon d’Or before him. He replied: “He has always been seen as a talented player; I have always been seen as the chosen one,” adding that Dembélé “caught up really well.”

Dembélé’s response was not long in coming. Speaking to Ligue 1 Plus, he said: “I have always been at the back of the class, working hard. In my whole career, I haven’t said a word. I have worked a lot. As I said, I was never the chosen one, but I worked and, last year, I was rewarded for a fantastic year with PSG.”

French reports described the relationship between the two stars as “frosty” at the start of the current France camp, the first under new head coach Zinédine Zidane, fuelling talk of a dressing-room rift.

But Dembélé settled the debate at his press conference ahead of the Nations League clash with Italy: “No, nothing. I don’t comment on all of these stories… These are little squabbles on social media. At 29 years old, I’m not really thinking about that.”

On his relationship with Mbappé, Dembélé added: “We have spoken. We are next to each other on the table. There isn’t a problem,” before praising the Real Madrid forward: “He’s scored an enormous amount of goals. When he’s here we’re very happy because he brings something extra.”

Dembélé is wearing the France captain’s armband during this camp, calling it “an honor”, while Mbappé misses the Italy game with a knee injury.

Dembélé enters the 2026 Ballon d’Or race as the defending champion chasing a second straight win, while Mbappé is still hunting his first, with the ceremony set to take place in London on October 26.