Umtiti: Mbappe's comments may have made some of his teammates uncomfortable.

Umtiti stated on the RMC program "Rothen s'enflamme" this Tuesday that Mbappe's comments about Dembele were taken out of context, and there was no reason for the two to have a conflict over it.

Discussions surrounding the 2026 Ballon d'Or and the competition between Dembele and Mbappe continue. Following Paris Saint-Germain's 1-0 away win against Brest in Ligue 1 last Sunday, Dembele responded to an interview with Mbappe regarding the individual award race. Mbappe had stated, "I've always been seen as the chosen one," while Dembele was described as "a talented player." The French captain was surprised by his national teammate's response, and the two will meet soon at the Clairefontaine training ground.

Umtiti believes the two players have very different personalities. He stated, "These two players have completely different personalities. Dembele is not Mbappe, and vice versa. Everyone knows Mbappe has his own way of expressing himself, and sometimes you need to understand what he's really trying to say and look at things from a broader perspective."

Umtiti wasn't surprised by the timing of Dembele's response, given that the Ballon d'Or ceremony is scheduled for October 26th in London. He said, "I'm not surprised by the timing. Obviously, we're in the final sprint for the Ballon d'Or."

Umtiti also believes that Dembele's response after the Brest match was not problematic, especially since he used Mbappe's phrase "the chosen one." He stated, "I don't mind Dembele saying that after the match; I think it's normal. If they're friends, there's absolutely no problem, especially since he used Mbappe's phrase."

However, Umtiti later admitted that Mbappe's way of expressing himself might have made some teammates uncomfortable. He cited his experience working with eight-time Ballon d'Or winner and Ballon d'Or record holder Lionel Messi at Barcelona as an example: "When I was at Barça, Messi would never make such comments about the Ballon d'Or. I find that a bit hard to accept, but Mbappe does it this way, and I think it might make some of his teammates uncomfortable."

Despite some reservations about Mbappe's manner of expression, Umtiti believes that the full content of Mbappe's statement has been overlooked. He said, "I reread what Mbappe said, and he didn't say anything bad about Dembele. It's just that his words were taken out of context, because he had just been praising Dembele."

Umtiti believes that Mbappe's comments about the different assessments of their careers were not an attack on Dembele. He stated, "What I saw was Mbappe saying that Dembele is very talented, and that's true. Nobody expected Dembele to win the Ballon d'Or; everyone previously thought Mbappe would win it. He was stating a fact."

Umtiti therefore remained cautious about whether there was actually a conflict between the two French internationals. He said, "I'm not sure if what's being said about Mbappe and Dembele is true; they have no reason to have a falling out." He concluded, "Ultimately, Mbappe didn't say anything bad. If we take that statement out of context, it becomes a minor issue."