'Leave him alone' - Kylian Mbappe launches passionate defence of rival Lamine Yamal and urges critics to keep out of his personal life amid growing media attention

Mbappe has pleaded with critics to leave Yamal alone as the spotlight continues to shine on the Barcelona star. Yamal won the 2025 Kopa Trophy at the Ballon d'Or ceremony last month as he was named the best player under the age of 21 in world football for the second year running.

However, the accelerated rise to superstardom means Yamal has come under scrutiny on private matters from the media. A number of outlets have chosen to focus on the Spain star's love life, while others have dug deep into the winger's dating history.

Additionally, Yamal is embroiled in a club vs country tug-of-war over his fitness. The teenager was called up to the Spain squad for World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and Bulgaria this month before being withdrawn following protestations from Barcelona boss Hansi Flick, who has criticised the national team over his handling for the star forward.

Yamal only recently returned to action having suffered a groin problem while on Spain duty last month as he missed wins over Valencia, Newcastle, Getafe and Real Oviedo.

And Real Madrid star Mbappe has leapt to the defence of Yamal, telling Jorge Valdano in an interview that will be broadcast on Movistar on Sunday, via ESPN: "You can see [Lamine] has passion for football and that's the only thing he mustn't lose.

"The rest is just his life. People talk about his personal life, but I think people should leave him alone."

Yamal started the La Liga season strongly, scoring twice and providing two assists in his opening three league outings of the campaign. Having suffered a groin problem with Spain last month, however, Yamal has made just one further league appearance since the 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano in August as he came off the bench for the 2-1 home win over Real Sociedad last month.

And Mbappe, who broke onto the scene at 16 years of age with Monaco, has backed Yamal, who debuted at just 15 in 2023, to learn from his mistakes.

"[Lamine] is a great football player, but in life he's an 18-year-old kid," Mbappe added.

"At 18 everyone makes mistakes. He'll live his life. We should only look at what he does on the pitch. The rest isn't important, as long as it isn't anything serious. He's a player with a great talent."

Mbappe and Real Madrid were involved in a similar fitness-war as Yamal and Barcelona with the former called up to the France squad for their World Cup qualifiers against Azerbaijan and Iceland this month, this despite suffering an ankle problem against Villarreal last weekend.

Even so, Mbappe started Friday's game over Azerbaijan, scoring the opening goal on the stroke of half time, extending his scoring run for club and country to 10 games in the process, before turning provider for Adrien Rabiot midway through the second half as France eased to a 3-0 home win.

Mbappe, though, was forced off in the 83rd minute after his ankle trapped in a challenge involving Abdulla Xaybulayev. While the France captain gingerly walked off, both club and country face an anxious wait to learn the full extent of the injury.

On the injury, France head coach Didier Deschamps said after the win over Azerbaijan: "It’s the same ankle where he was hurt. The pain decreases when he rests. In a match, contacts are inevitably going to happen. We will assess it. He has discomfort that is not ideal for him."

Les Bleus take on Iceland Monday night and victory in Reykjavík will all but confirm France's place at the 2026 World Cup.