France forward Ousmane Dembele and former midfielder Paul Pogba have strongly defended national team captain Kylian Mbappe amid growing scrutiny over his defensive work rate and recent performances for club and country ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
The France squad recently arrived in Boston to establish their tournament base following mixed results in pre-tournament friendlies, including a 2-1 loss to Ivory Coast and a 3-1 victory against Northern Ireland.
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Mbappe has faced intense pressure from supporters and media alike after Real Madrid failed to win a trophy this season, alongside reports from L'Equipe of a locker room confrontation where Dembele urged Mbappe to increase his defensive pressing.
"The criticism towards him is very, very unfair. Some people go a bit too far with the criticism of Kylian," Dembele told Spanish newspaper Marca.
Dembele highlighted that Mbappe remains a highly capable leader for Les Bleus despite the intense media focus on his personal life and off-field choices.
"He's an incredible player and a very good person off the pitch. Some people overdo the criticism because he's Kylian Mbappe.
They shouldn't keep going after him," added Dembele.
The forward expressed frustration at the microscopic level of attention directed toward the Real Madrid striker.
"Whether he ties his shoelaces or not, whether he pulls up his socks or not... it's too much.
He's still a human being. With the France team, he's very good with us, he's a leader," continued Dembele.
