France's Kylian Mbappé, the Real Madrid star, was taken by surprise by the remarks made by his compatriot and France team-mate Ousmane Dembélé on Sunday.
Mbappé had recently stated, while speaking about the Ballon d'Or: "Dembélé has always been seen as a gifted player. As for me, I have always been considered the chosen one. I reached the top straight away and at an early age. He has had a different career, because of injuries, but he has managed to make up for that very well."
Dembélé fired back after Paris Saint-Germain's 1-0 win over Brest: "I have always been like this. I have always sat at the back of the class and worked hard. Throughout my career, I did not say a single word, I just worked."
"I was never the chosen one, I worked hard and was rewarded with a wonderful year with Paris," he added. "This year we will see (the situation in the Ballon d'Or), I am following it without any pressure. We will see."
According to the French newspaper L'Équipe, Dembélé's comments on Sunday caught Mbappé off guard too. He has no intention of responding publicly, and the pair have not spoken to each other so far.
This is not the first time Dembélé has felt aggrieved by something Mbappé has said, the French newspaper pointed out.
Several of Mbappé's public statements over recent years had already irritated Dembélé.
L'Équipe reported that Dembélé, who knows Mbappé better than anyone else but is not naive, has always chosen to remain publicly silent regarding Kylian's statements.
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