Mbappe will definitely make France debut, confirms Deschamps
France coach Didier Deschamps has made it clear Monaco star Kylian Mbappe will definitely get playing time in either the World Cup qualifier against Luxembourg or the international friendly versus Spain.
The 18-year-old was rewarded for his stunning performances in recent months with a first call-up to the senior national side and Deschamps is adamant he will soon hand the attacker his first cap.
"Kylian is putting in some great performances at the moment," Deschamps said at a media conference.
"He is scoring goals and is in excellent form. Seeing as he is still very young, he obviously still has room for improvement. But it is quite remarkable what he has been doing, how calm and mature he is. He got here with a big smile on his face.
.@KMbappe (18 ans) est arrivé tout sourire ce midi à Clairefontaine pour sa 1ère convocation en @equipedefrance A! #FiersdetreBleus pic.twitter.com/2FV75qngcC
— Equipe de France (@equipedefrance) March 20, 2017
"There is no reason why he could not start. The fact that it is his first time with the national team does not mean he cannot start. But we should not move too fast.
"That I called him up does mean that he will play at some point, though. All the players who I called up should have the ambition to start."
13 - Mbappe is the youngest player to score 13 goals in Ligue 1 for 30 years (18 yo & 3 m), ahead of…Thierry Henry (19 yo & 3 m). Pupil. pic.twitter.com/4lhEcBjtNZ
— OptaJean (@OptaJean) March 19, 2017
Mbappe has already scored 19 goals in 32 appearances in all competitions this campaign.