Ousmane Dembele insists he and Kylian Mbappe have ‘no problem’ after social media exchanges

Ousmane Dembele has played down speculation about a rift with France team-mate Kylian Mbappe, insisting the pair have spoken and remain on good terms.

The Paris Saint-Germain forward was asked about his relationship with Mbappe before France’s Nations League meeting with Italy, amid comparisons between the two players and their contrasting paths to the top of the game.

Mbappe has described himself as “the chosen player” who reached the summit directly, while Dembele has portrayed his own career as one built through persistence and hard work.

“I was always at the back of the line and worked hard,” Dembele said. “Throughout my career, I never said a word; I just worked a lot. As I said, I was never the chosen player, but I worked hard.

“Last year, I was rewarded for a great season with Paris Saint-Germain. As for this year, we will see what happens, without pressure and calmly.”

Dembele was reluctant to prolong the discussion during his news conference, making it clear he wanted to move attention away from what he called minor disagreements online.

“I will not comment on all these stories,” he said, according to Foot Mercato. “These little exchanges on social media. At 29, I have no desire to get involved in these things. I am focused on something else, which is what happens on the pitch.”

A journalist later returned to the subject in a light-hearted way, congratulating Dembele on being “the chosen player” for the news conference before asking whether he was still friends with Mbappe.

Dembele, who has won 69 caps and scored 13 goals for France, gave a brief response.

“As I said, all these stories connected to social media… yes, we have spoken, and we sit next to each other at the dining table. There is no problem,” he said.

He was also asked whether France were a different side when Mbappe was unavailable.

“There are no differences. Mbappe is an important player for the national team. He has proved that throughout these years,” Dembele replied.

“Mbappe has scored a huge number of goals and he is the captain of the national team. When he is there, we are very happy. After that, there are other players who can emerge and perform.

“It is a group. All 23 players are important. That is the most important thing.”

The comments come after Dembele was widely viewed as having established himself strongly against his fellow France forward, particularly in the race for the Ballon d’Or.