France tried to manage Mbappe amid injury worries, says Deschamps
France will be without Kylian Mbappe for their trip to Iceland after the striker suffered a knock to the ankle against Azerbaijan on Friday.
Didier Deschamps insists France tried to manage Kylian Mbappe as well as they could after he was ruled out of Monday's clash against Iceland through injury.
Mbappe was one of the goalscorers in Les Bleus' 3-0 victory over Azerbaijan on Friday, netting for the 10th game in a row for club and country.
However, he sustained a knock to his right ankle in the latter stages of that match and has since returned to Real Madrid to receive treatment.
Mbappe had suffered an issue with the same ankle in Madrid's last match before the international break, but Deschamps brushed off suggestions they could have taken more care of their captain.
"Was he supposed to play so much? We can always ask ourselves that question," Deschamps told Telefoot.
"I had a lot of discussions with Kylian – during the week, before the match, at half-time, during the second half.
"It didn't get worse. He wasn't in more serious pain, but there were some shocks. Before I took him off, he got a blow exactly where his ankle hurt.
"Obviously, he stopped immediately. Without that shock, given his form, there was no particular problem.
"In football, there is contact and, unfortunately, you can get injured."
France sit top of Group D at the halfway stage of their qualifying campaign, having won all three of their matches so far.
If they beat Iceland on Monday, and Ukraine fail to beat Azerbaijan, Deschamps' side will book their place in next year's tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
And France have never lost to Iceland in 16 previous meetings, winning 12 and drawing four of those; they won the reverse qualifying fixture 2-1.
AC Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan will take the armband in Mbappe's absence in Reykjavik, and Deschamps is confident his leadership will be key to getting a positive result.
"Mike is a leader. Against Azerbaijan, when Kylian came off, he took over the armband," Deschamps added.
"He did it all last season and still does it from time to time with Milan. He has this ability to be a leader. He is decisive.
"The fact that he has been able to play so many matches means that he is present. He is a great competitor, even in training.
"He is a workaholic, sometimes a little too much in my opinion. But that's how he is, and he knows himself well."
