Kylian Mbappe didn’t make it to France’s press conference on Monday, which was perhaps relevant for one single fact: he is still allowing others to do the leg work for him.That’s been a loaded topic in New York this week, ahead of his entry to the stage against Senegal on Tuesday. Will he put in a defensive shift? And can France realise their fabulous potential in this tournament if he doesn’t?With Mbappe, there is always a narrative but lately, and especially in Madrid, the tone has veered in heated directions. His greatness is undisputed, but what about his character? What about the cost of indulging him? Immensely high ceilings, but what about the flaws?There was a magnificent example of this polarity over the weekend. The setting was an interview with Le Parisien and a question was raised around his intentions for life after football. Specifically, Mbappe was asked if presidential aspirations might exist in his future.He couldn’t help laughing before pointing out one issue: ‘I’m already hated enough as it is.’It’s a strange time to be Mbappe. And that hatred is a curious thing, because Mbappe is, at heart, an expression of sporting joy. Kylian Mbappe is set to be one of the stars at this World Cup but is unloved by many supporters Kylian Mbappe and his girlfriend Ester Exposito flew to Sardinia while Real Madrid playedHe is a wrecking ball, a rainmaker, a fast-footed menace and probably the game’s best player since the peaks of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. By the age of 27, he has won one World Cup final and scored a hat-trick in defeat in another. But here he is in the United States and facing a very real and valid need to prove himself.Confusing, right?Separating fact from fiction on Mbappe is a tricky business. For instance, there’s a ‘petition’ to force him out of Real Madrid that you may have heard about since it first appeared on May 5 – it has been reported with some earnestness by the BBC, Sports Illustrated and The Guardian, among others. But it’s also quite clearly a fake, or at the very least a count manipulated beyond any credibility.As of 10.30am in New York on Monday, just as Didier Deschamps was beginning his press conference, the call for Madridistas to ‘make your voice heard’ had apparently been signed by 96.7million people. Daily Mail Sport monitored it for a couple of hours thereafter and the number climbed at a suspiciously uniform rate of around 1,700 signatures per minute.In attempting to explore the ‘about’, ‘contact’ or ‘privacy policy’ tabs on mbappeout.com, we were redirected to a variety of gaming sites, financial spam and semi-pornographic cartoons. In short, it’s a hoax.But it is representative of localised feeling. The petition is false noise, yes, but what it signifies is accurate, because they don’t like him so much in Madrid. One Spanish-based colleague far closer to that situation than me rated supporter affections for Mbappe at ‘zero’. Offered Erling Haaland as an alternative, they’d jump at it, he said, and with good reason.So here’s another thought about misleading numbers: they cut both ways, because Mbappe’s statistics across two seasons at Madrid are sensational – 86 goals in 103 games – but the team got worse. He was LaLiga’s top scorer in both of those campaigns and Real Madrid won the title in neither.Why might that be? And how does it relate to the questions Deschamps has faced of late around a transference of problems to the national team at the World Cup? That’s the conversation about the leg work and Opta’s statistics validate the Madrid-based optics of a man who won’t work for those around him. Despite his goal output, many Real Madrid fans are unhappy with his workrate and attitudeOf players who appeared at least 19 times in Europe’s top five leagues, Mbappe ranked 1,350th out of 1,490 for combined interceptions, blocks, tackles and possession won. There’s a fair retort here about the purpose of a striker but how often can a team thrive these days if they don’t defend from the front? Regaining possession high up the pitch has become a key trend and Mbappe doesn’t do that.At Madrid, where the temperature often runs hottest, the negative impression has exacerbated by ambient grumbles – their fans didn’t appreciate him going on holiday to Sardinia with his girlfriend in May, at a point when he was injured and the team was struggling. That sparked the petition.Tone-deaf? Probably. Poor optics? Certainly. But those are flimsy measures. Easy ammunition for cheap shots.The defensive contribution is the more tangible, less sexy debate, and no doubt assisted by PSG winning the Champions League twice since Mbappe agitated his way to the exit in 2024.Far from being excited by what you can win with Mbappe in your side, the perception has shifted to an idea that he is a limitation; a modern-day superstar but one who is unwilling, or unable, to abide by modern tactics.PSG’s recent history has proven the value of a team dynamic, where one man doesn’t stand above all else. In tandem, Mbappe has been appropriated as the face of what went before, which is slightly skewed thinking and yet inescapably pertinent.Here in New York, he stands on the cusp of history. With one more goal, he will tie Olivier Giroud as France’s top scorer on 57. With four, he will equal Miroslav Klose’s World Cup record of 16. Individual glories are there to be had and France’s potential is equally obvious.No squad has so much attacking talent – Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise, Rayan Cherki, Desire Doue, Bradley Barcola, Maghnes Akliouche, Jean-Philippe Mateta and Marcus Thuram are an ensemble to make rivals weep. They can’t all start but those who do will need to operate selflessly at times. They cannot all be the hero.No manager knows better the value of a water carrier than Deschamps, and the last spin of his 14-year reign will be defined by how he keeps his mavericks in line. Mbappe, for one, has promised he will defend more. Mbappe has already vowed to put in a defensive shift for Didier Deschamps’ team this summer’I need to take the extra step because it’s something important for the team and I have to do it,’ he said, as part of that same interview with Le Parisien.’It will start this time because we want to win, and to win, I’m ready to do whatever because I want to win at all costs.’Amusingly, that particular question was asked not by a journalist, but via video link from a guest. That being Ethan Mbappe, Kylian’s younger brother. The enquiry was sublime: ‘Hey Kyky, do you ever plan to defend or press one day?’His gilded sibling laughed at that one, just as he did the question about being president. The truth of his answer might well determine the outcome of the World Cup.Which England star has 7 GCSEs? Who has lost half of his finger? Test your knowledge of Thomas Tuchel’s squad with our exclusive quiz HERE.