France midfielder Adrien Rabiot has quipped that his international teammate Kylian Mbappe "annoys" him in interviews as they prepare to return to domestic action after their World Cup heartbreak.
Both Rabiot, 27, and Mbappe, 24, started for Didier Deschamps' side in the World Cup final against Argentina earlier this month. Mbappe plundered a remarkable hat-trick to give France a fighting chance of retaining their crown but it was La Albiceleste who prevailed on penalties to break French hearts.
Rabiot has since returned to Juventus and will be bidding to extinguish any remnants of a World Cup hangover when the Italian giants resume their Serie A campaign against Cremonese next Wednesday. But he appears to have hinted that he is already starting to get over the demoralising defeat by making a light-hearted joke at Mbappe's expense.
In an interview with Le Média Carré, Rabiot was asked to dish the dirt on Mbappe; specifically, how the Paris Saint-Germain striker 'irks' him.
In response, Rabiot mischievously said: “Kylian annoys me when he changes his voice in interviews. When we are together, he speaks normally, but when you watch the interview, I don’t know why, his voice changes. It’s annoying and stressful.”
While Rabiot is set to return to action next week, Mbappe will come face-to-face with Lionel Messi at PSG in the coming days - just a fortnight after they went head-to-head in one of the greatest World Cup finals in modern history.
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Messi, who scored twice in the final, eventually came out on top to claim the World Cup trophy and some have suggested that the duo could be affected by the clash once they return to the Parc des Princes.
But PSG boss Christophe Galtier has scotched talk that Mbappe and Messi could be set for a frosty reunion after Emiliano Martinez, Messi's Argentina teammate, mocked Mbappe on a number of occasions since his starring role in Argentina's shootout triumph in Qatar.
"I would focus on the relationship between them," Galter said earlier this week when quizzed on the incidents. "It wasn't Leo Messi winding anybody else up. What I saw after the final, what I have experienced, is there is no reason to mix these things up because the goalkeeper's behaviour is down to him."
He added: "What matters to me is the relationship between the players. Kylian Mbappe had a very good attitude, despite losing. Of course, he was very disappointed, but he did that in a classy way. He congratulated Leo Messi and that is a very good thing for the club and for the team."
