Kylian Mbappe has said he won’t “waste energy on such futile things” when asked about Argentina’s taunts after the 2022 World Cup final.
Argentina defeated France on penalty kicks to win the World Cup, after a thrilling 3-3 draw in which Mbappe, 24, scored a hat-trick.
After the game, Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez called for a minute’s silence for Mbappe during his team’s dressing-room celebrations. He later posed with a doll depicting the player.
“Celebrations are not my problem,” Mbappe told RMC Sport after he scored a dramatic late winning goal for Paris Saint-Germain against Strasbourg on Wednesday.
“I don’t waste energy on such futile things.”
Martinez, 30, is due to report back to Aston Villa today and the club’s new manager, Unai Emery, has already said he plans to speak to the goalkeeper about his celebrations.
“When you have big emotion, sometimes it is difficult to control it,” Emery said after the final.
“I will speak to him next week about some celebrations but I respect that he is now under the national team and when he will be with us, he is our responsibility then we can speak about it.”
Mbappe added that the result and subsequent fallout would not cause any problems between him and PSG team-mate Lionel Messi, because he wants to be “a good sportsman”.
He said: “I spoke with (Messi) after the match, I congratulated him.
“It was the quest of a lifetime for him, for me too, but I failed, so you always have to be a good sportsman.”
Mbappe, who won the Golden Boot in Qatar, rescued victory for PSG on Wednesday as his late penalty secured victory over Strasbourg in his first game since losing the World Cup final.
(Photo: Getty Images)
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