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• Mbappe free to do what he wants, says Deschamps after nightclub controversy

  France manager Didier Deschamps believes Kylian Mbappe should be allowed to do what he wants, playing down rumours of a rift between the two.

  The comments came after Mbappe was spotted in a nightclub in Sweden on Thursday, the same night France beat Israel 4-1, having been left out of the squad by Deschamps to recover from an injury.

  Mbappe had suffered a muscle injury with Real Madrid last month and was given the international break to rest by the France manager. 

  But Deschamps was both unconcerned and unaware of the striker's excursion.

  "I don't follow the news of players who are not here," he said. "Kylian is following a programme with Real Madrid. I don't know if he was away or not."

  The controversy stems from rumours that Mbappe had asked Deschamps to only play him in 'important' international matches, as he prioritises winning the Ballon d'Or.

  Given that Mbappe had returned from injury for Real Madrid, coming off the bench against Lille in the Champions League earlier this month and starting the 2-0 victory over Villarreal in LaLiga a few days later, the decision to leave Mbappe out raised questions.

  Deschamps, though, was quick to give a logical explanation for the absence of their biggest player, who is just nine goals behind Olivier Giroud (57) as France's all-time top scorer.

  "Like any player for his club, he follows a programme. If players have days off, they are free to do what they want," added Deschamps.

  France face Belgium on Monday without Mbappe, having beaten them 2-0 at home in the reverse fixture last month.

  The striker only made a 23-minute cameo off the bench in that game, though he had the joint-most shots in the game (four) and the second-most touches in the box (five) among his team-mates.

  Deschamps' side are, in fact, unbeaten in their last five matches without their captain in the starting XI. They are a point behind group-leaders Italy at the halfway point.

• Mbappe needs time to adapt in Madrid, says Kempes

  Kylian Mbappe must be afforded time to understand his new Real Madrid role, with differing challenges posed compared to his success with France and Paris Saint-Germain.

  Former Argentina international Mario Kempes believes Mbappe will not have faced an experience like the pressure that comes with playing with Madrid.

  The France captain has still managed seven goals in just 11 appearances to start his Los Blancos career, including finding the net five times in eight LaLiga appearances.

  Yet Kempes, a 43-cap Argentina international, says Mbappe will have to adapt after what he sees as easier challenges when playing for France and Ligue 1 giants PSG.

  "I can't talk about being a number nine, because I've never been one. I think it's all a matter of getting used to it, because Mbappe isn't going to come in and score 40 goals," Kempes told Stats Perform at Festival dello Sport in Trento, Italy.

  "It's different to play in France or in the national team, it's nothing like playing in Madrid. At Madrid, you have to play 11 players or more every game and sometimes the ball doesn't go in or hits the post."

  Mbappe scored 27 times in 29 league appearances for PSG last term, as well as eight goals in 12 Champions League outings.

  He has taken to life in Spain with ease, too, also managing five LaLiga goals in September – a tally no player could better last month across Europe's top five leagues.

  The 25-year-old has since opted to sit out of France's October internationals with Israel and Belgium, despite declaring himself fit to play for Carlo Ancelotti's side.

  That has caused backlash from some supporters in France and former players after Mbappe made his focus clear on his intentions with Madrid, and his sights on a first Ballon d'Or.

  His success with Madrid will be dictated by the relationship with his team-mates, says Kempes, who expects Mbappe to need time to impress in the Spanish capital.

  "You also have to get to know your team-mates," Kempes added. "They are young and have a lot of desire and are very good, you also have to get to know each other on the pitch.

  "There is still a long way to go."

  Mbappe and Madrid return to domestic action on Saturday when they visit Celta Vigo.

• Mona, Hillel kickstart 2024 Canopy Insurance/JISA Alberga Cup season quest with impressive victories

  The 2023 Canopy Insurance/JISA Under-12 Alberga Cup finalists, Mona Preparatory and Hillel Academy kickstarted their quest for victory on Saturday when they played opening matches against St. Hughs Preparatory and American International School of Kingston (AISK) at the National Water Commission’s (NWC) Mona field and the AISK field respectively. The 2023 Cup finalists were 2 of 17 matches played across 5 zones set for both Kingston & St. Catherine.

  Mona, who played in Zone 4, won their opener against St. Hugh’s and were in high spirits as they believe they have a chance to repeat history. Coached by Vivian Nelson they clocked 11-0; while unsure if his team is ready, he is looking forward to them playing some good football.

  "I’m not sure if we’re ready but the season [already] started so we’ll just play. At 11-0, they’re just showing that they picked up from where they left off so, it was a good game, the first game; we just want to see where they are after the pre-season, so [it] never really looked bad, the playing is okay, but I think as we go along we expect some improvement.”

  Nelson said that compared to last year, it’s more or less the same results from the first match.

  “If we judge by that [match] then, the season is the same; we’re hoping to get there [on the top spot] again. We have an ongoing program plus some of these youngsters play football right round [the year] so when they’re not with me they’re with the Dare to Dream Football Academy; we put in some work in pre-season; expect youngsters [to be] youngsters and score. [But] I’m looking at how they play the position, their discipline and how they control the game.

  Noting that while they’re playing for victory, he’s not looking at teams now, he’s focused on his team to see where the season takes them, whilst praising his competent returning players.

  Their opening opponent’s coach, Pryce of St. Hughs Prep believes they can get better.

   “We have a fairly young team this year, a group of grade 5 boys coming out to play some really nice football, they were up against the defending champions which is very good and for me they performed the best they could.” said Pryce.

  “The boys are growing, they are coming along, they have a lot more experience to gain so the more they play, the better they’ll get over the years. They’re just here to put on a good show for themselves this year and get some confidence going into next year’s season. They just need to play faster and a bit more confident.”

  In another St. Andrew match, 2023 finalist Hillel, the Zone 2 favorite, took home the gold with a 7-2 score at the end of the match to secure their move to the next round. While both teams were tied at halftime, Hillel took things up a notch in the second half to score 5 more points.

  “It was our first game and we just wanted to see how the boys would play real competitively, and they did well; apart from a few mistakes we got back in our game in the second half and scored some goals, tried to get the benchers in and get some experience for the new ones but all in all, we have more work to do because I’m quite sure there are better teams out there to play; we’re looking forward to that; we need the challenge to ensure our team is ready.” said coach Nicholas Locke of Hillel Academy.

   

  Coach-nominated Players of the Match for the 2024 season’s opener included St. Hugh’s James Whittingham and Hillel’s Jace Lowe.

  Other matches played in Saturday’s season opener included: Lannaman’s Prep VS Mount Alvernia Prep (2-0), Creative Kids VS Ardenne Prep (0-1), Emmanuel Christian Academy VS Portmore Missionary Prep (8-0) and Sts. Peter and Paul VS Our Lady of the Angels Prep (11-0).