Ousmane Dembélé hits back at Kylian Mbappé’s ‘chosen one’ comment as Ballon d’Or race heats up

Ousmane Dembélé hits back at Kylian Mbappé’s ‘chosen one’ comment as Ballon d’Or race heats up Is there a bit of tension mounting between France teammates Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé? The former’s comments following Paris Saint-Germain’s win over Stade Brestois (1-0) on Sunday night would seem to suggest so. Both Mbappé and Dembélé have been nominated for this year’s Ballon d’Or, which will be awarded in London next month. The latter currently holds the title, whilst the former is a player who was always expected to win the award. However, at the age of 27, the Real Madrid forward has yet to do so. Mbappé is optimistic about his chances of winning the trophy this year. Speaking to France Football, Les Bleus’ captain was asked about Dembélé and responded: “He has always been seen as a talented player; I have always been seen as the chosen one.” Dembélé’s words to Ligue 1 Plus on Sunday night can certainly be viewed as a response to his former PSG teammate. “I have always been at the back of the class, working hard. In my whole career, I haven’t said a word. I have worked a lot. As I said, I was never the chosen one, but I worked and, last year, I was rewarded for a fantastic year with PSG, and this year, we will see, without pressure, calm,” said the PSG forward. Once again, Dembélé was key last season as Les Parisiens retained the UEFA Champions League trophy. Real Madrid failed to win any major titles, but Mbappé did net an impressive 42 goals in 44 games for Los Blancos. It was also the season in which he became France’s all-time leading goalscorer, surpassing Olivier Giroud. GFFN | Luke Entwistle