Mbappe 'rape' report 'not good' for France team, says coach

BRUSSELS, Belgium — France coach Didier Deschamps said Monday (Tuesday Manila time) that a report claiming captain Kylian Mbappe was being investigated for rape in Sweden "is not a good thing for the national team".

"Everyone is free to write what they want but there is a negative atmosphere" around the French team, Deschamps told reporters following the 2-1 win in Belgium in the UEFA Nations League.

His comments came in response to questions about Mbappe, the France skipper who was allowed to sit out the team's games this month in order to work on his fitness.

That was already a source of controversy in the build-up to last Thursday's win against Israel, before a newspaper in Sweden on Monday claimed that the Real Madrid striker was being investigated for rape following a visit to Stockholm.

After Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported that an alleged rape had been reported to police but did not say who was accused, another publication, Expressen, said 25-year-old Mbappe was the suspect.

The player has denounced the report as "fake news".

"Be careful when you pick things up," Deschamps warned.

"You had better take a bit of a step back before publishing anything and everything, but these things happen so often," he said, appearing to cast doubt on the report.

"There are things that are not difficult to verify, but if you credit any old thing...

"In any case I am not going to talk to him about it. He is big enough to know how to communicate."