Despite kicking off the 2022/23 season in brilliant fashion, not all is well at PSG. The French giants have won their opening two fixtures, scoring a whopping 10 goals while only conceding two, but an ongoing rift between two players threatens the harmony of Galtier's side.
And to no one's surprise, this issue is between none other than Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, two of the biggest names in the dressing room. Their rocky relationship was evident for all to see in the recent 5-2 victory over Montpellier, with the pair locking horns over a penalty.
The defending champions were awarded two spot kicks during that weekend tie, the first of which Mbappe took and missed. However, when the second penalty was awarded, which was won by Lionel Messi, Neymar grabbed the ball and refused to hand it over, much to the Frenchman's frustration.
Additionally, a clip has gone viral in which the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner throws his arm up in anger and stops running after Vitinha failed to pass him the ball during a counter-attack. On the back of that, Spanish news outlet AS have dropped an interesting article, reporting that the 23-year-old feels "disappointed" and "isolated" regarding the current situation at the Parc des Princes.
This stems from a few issues. First of all, the player was given a number of promises before re-signing for PSG despite the interest from Real Madrid. However, they haven't all been fulfilled.
One promise given to the former Monaco ace was the honor of taking all penalties. According to ESPN, Mbappe is the no.1 penalty taker and Neymar is no.2, with the Brazilian only being allowed to take a spot kick while his teammate is on the pitch only if he wins the penalty.
This was not the case on Saturday, hence the confrontation. Mbappe went on to score in that 5-2 triumph but the attacker was visibly unhappy throughout the game. Additionally, Kylian was under the presumption that Neymar would be moved on this summer but the Selecao ace remains at the Parc des Princes.
The issues don't stop there, unfortunately. Mbappe wasn't happy with Neymar's professionalism and discipline last season while the South American wasn't pleased with the power given to the Frenchman with his new deal. Additionally, the former Barcelona winger was angered by the decision to strip him of penalty duties.
On top of that, the former Santos sensation liked a post which criticized his PSG teammate, sparking an intervention from sporting director Luis Campos. The Portuguese veteran reminded both players of their duties and the requirement of respecting the manager. Both men claimed to have buried the hatchet, but with PSG becoming notorious for boasting a clash of egos, don't expect this issue to die down anytime soon.
