Kylian Mbappe tension grows at Real Madrid

Real Madrid’s dressing room and board are increasingly frustrated with Kylian Mbappe, as doubts over his fitness and the noise around him continue to build, according to The Athletic.

The mood has reportedly shifted after a series of issues, rather than one single flashpoint.

The situation escalated when Mbappe missed the recent Clásico defeat to Barcelona and drew criticism for a social media post published while Madrid were already 2-0 down. Inside the club, this has been viewed as another example of unnecessary distraction around the French star.

Mbappe’s last appearance came against Real Betis on April 24, when he requested to be substituted with a hamstring problem. He was then given time off to recover, but a trip to Italy during that period is said not to have gone down well internally, especially as he only returned shortly before the Espanyol match.

The communication over his fitness before the Barcelona game further irritated some at the club. While there was late optimism he might feature, Madrid’s medical staff are understood to have deemed him unfit all week, and he was finally left out of the squad on Sunday morning. Taken together, these episodes have contributed to a broader sense of disappointment about the constant attention and mixed signals surrounding Mbappe at Real Madrid.