D-1 before the big meeting. Four days after having had difficulty getting past the Belgian obstacle, the French team has a meeting with Portugal, Friday, in the quarter-finals of the Euro. A meeting that will be attended by the families and friends of the Blues. But the Mbappé clan will also be accompanied by a former player of Olympique de Marseille.
Kylian Mbappé wanted to invite Jean-Charles de Bono. The reason? The former midfielder had allowed little Mbappé to meet his idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, when he was only ten years old. Present at the Vélodrome on December 8, 2009 to watch the Champions League clash between OM and Real Madrid, little Mbappé burst into tears after the final whistle when CR7 ignored him in the stands.
Kylian Mbappé has “a big heart”
Moved by the young boy’s distress, Jean-Charles de Bono, who worked as a consultant for OMTV, took him under his wing to take him to the mixed zone where Kylian Mbappé could finally meet the Madrid star. A story that neither of them has forgotten. But Jean-Charles de Bono only learned the young boy’s identity very recently, according to FC Marseille.
For his part, Kylian Mbappé would have gone out of his way to find “the man with the shaved head”, as soon as it was decided that France would face Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal. And this in order to thank him for his kind attention, almost 15 years ago.
“It’s an incredible step, he confided to the Marseille site. I thought it was a hoax at first. It’s crazy that he could remember that, and did the research to find me.”
“Humanly, I find it extraordinary. I didn’t remember this story at all. It was at the time when I was working for OMTV with Pape Diouf. It really shows that beyond his immense talent as a footballer, he also has a big heart.”he added.
