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France head coach Didier Deschamps has defended captain Kylian Mbappe following criticism of his leadership style, insisting the public perception of the star forward does not reflect who he really is within the national team setup.Speaking after France’s tense 1-0 victory over Paraguay in the FIFA World Cup Round of 16, Deschamps rejected suggestions that Mbappe had become overly authoritative since taking over the captaincy.“No, he hasn’t changed. You make him seem like a dictator. Kylian has an image for some people on the outside that doesn’t correspond at all to reality,” Deschamps told reporters after the match.France secured their place in the quarter-finals thanks to Mbappe’s second-half penalty in a fiercely contested encounter at Lincoln Financial Field. Despite dominating possession, Les Bleus struggled to break down Paraguay’s disciplined defence in a game that saw no shots on target from either side before half-time.The match was marked by several flashpoints, including a challenge on Mbappe that triggered a mass confrontation between players. However, Deschamps said his team had been prepared for Paraguay’s aggressive approach and handled the situation well.“I’ve seen a lot of things,” Deschamps said.“I have prepared the players. The players were expecting this game. I do not want to criticise Paraguay. Each team plays the way they want. But there were some insults from the other bench which I could have done without,” he added.“The most important thing is that by the end of the game, there were no disagreements and that we (did not) get another card,” he said.France eventually found the breakthrough in the 66th minute when Desire Doue won a penalty, which Mbappe converted calmly. Paraguay pushed for an equaliser late on, but France held firm to book a quarter-final clash against Morocco.
