Explained: Why Kylian Mbappe was left on the bench as France slumped to 2-1 loss against Germany

• Mbappe benched against Germany
• Was carrying a knee injury
• Germany beat France 2-1

WHAT HAPPENED? The Paris Saint-Germain star did not play a part in France's international friendly against Germany as he started on the bench and was not even introduced as a substitute. Goals from Thomas Muller and Leroy Sane gave Germany victory, with Antoine Griezmann's late penalty ultimately proving to be nothing more than a consolation.

WHY WAS KYLIAN MBAPPE LEFT ON THE BENCH? After the game, France manager Deschamps explained that Mbappe injured his knee during the team's training session on Monday. He also confirmed that the injury was not serious and that benching him was just a precautionary measure.

WHAT THEY SAID: Speaking to L'Equipe channel after the Germany clash, Deschamps said: "Kylian has a problem with his patellar tendon following yesterday's training (Monday). It's not serious, but it's a problem that bothers him and with risks too. If he couldn’t start, he shouldn’t have been brought on either."

IN THREE PHOTOS:

Getty Images

Getty Images

THE BIGGER PICTURE: After a disastrous 4-1 loss to Japan in their last friendly match which resulted in the sacking of Hansi Flick as the national team head coach, Germany came back strongly by beating France 2-1. as Rudi Voller took the reins as interim manager for the first time.

WHAT'S NEXT: The international break is over and the players are set to return to their respective clubs as club football resumes this weekend. However, It remains to be seen whether or not Mbappe will be fit to return for PSG's next Ligue 1 outing against Nice.