Kylian Mbappé Not Included in France Preliminary Olympic Squad
Thierry Henry announced the provisional squad for the Paris 2024 Olympics, and Mbappé is not included.
French forward Kylian Mbappé is not listed in the preliminary squad for the Paris Olympics announced by coach Thierry Henry on Monday.
Henry stated that the preliminary list "can change and will change" and noted that negotiations with many clubs are ongoing to allow players to attend, as the tournament does not fall on a FIFA date.
"The people I spoke to were very direct. There was no negotiation: you ask, they say no, and you move on," Henry said, emphasizing that no doors are closed.
The provisional list includes two players over 23 years old, Jean-Philippe Mateta from Crystal Palace and Alexandre Lacazette from Lyon, but Henry mentioned that he will add a third.
Henry noted that French clubs have been more amenable to releasing players for the list compared to foreign clubs, an attitude he said he understands.
The coach included two Paris Saint-Germain players, midfielder Warren Zaïre-Emery and forward Bradley Barcola, who will also be participating in the Euro 2024. However, he cautioned that their final inclusion depends on "ongoing negotiations in the coming weeks."
Henry initially named 26 players. On July 3, he must submit a final list of 22 players (18 official and four reserves) to FIFA, which will be confirmed to the IOC two days later. France plans to convene its Olympic team on June 16, with the competition starting on July 24, two days before the opening ceremony.