PARIS -- Kylian Mbapp returns to lead France against Croatia after a six-month absence and on Wednesday criticized himself over how he handled the captaincy before.
The Real Madrid star captains Les Bleus in Split in the first leg of a Nations League quarterfinal on Thursday, with the return leg on Sunday at Stade de France.
It will be his first start for France since a 3-1 loss to Italy on Sept. 6. That match was held at Parc des Princes, home to his former club Paris Saint-Germain. Mbapp said he did not handle things well at the time.
"I am lucid enough to know what I do well and what I don't do well. I know people were not happy with what I was doing on and off the field, and I wasn't doing them well," Mbapp said at a pre-match news conference. "I have no problem questioning myself. I have never had any problem with criticism when it is deserved and well-argued."
Back in September, Mbapp was subpar for Madrid and the national team but he hit back and said that people's opinions about him were "the least of my worries."
He also said "I don't care" about the reception he will get playing again at PSG's stadium having left following months of strong tensions with the club's hierarchy and the fans.
Six months later, he accepts some of the criticism aimed his way at the time was valid.
"I didn't play well against Italy and my [pre-match] news conference didn't please people, because as captain I didn't bring people together," Mbapp said. "I accept that, but now the most important thing is to move forward and not to repeat the same mistakes."
The 26-year-old Mbapp is third on France's all-time scoring list with 48 goals, but he has found the net in only two of his past 12 international games. There were doubts as to whether Mbapp would keep the captaincy, but he did so following discussions with coach Didier Deschamps.
The 2018 World Cup winner was left out of Nations League matches against Israel and Italy last November, when Deschamps said " it's better that way " given Mbapp's physical and mental struggles.
Mbapp was also absent from a previous gathering because of a minor thigh injury, but nevertheless played for Real Madrid, thus angering many France fans and raising questions over priorities between club and country.
After a difficult start to his Madrid career, Mbapp is now scoring freely and has 31 goals in 44 games this season.
"I am feeling good, I feel happy to play football," Mbapp said. "I am happy to be here to help the [France] team."
Mbapp only has Thierry Henry (51 goals) and Olivier Giroud (57) ahead of him in the national team.
Mbapp is set to be reunited in attack with PSG forward Ousmane Dembl, the French league's top scorer.
Both have already reached 30 goals overall this season, but while Mbapp did so for the seventh time in a row, the newly prolific Dembl managed it for the first time.
"He's another string to our bow," Mbapp said of Dembl, who is also a close friend. "When you see his current form it gives us even more options, it makes us even more unpredictable for the opponent."
He relishes the prospect of facing the Croats together.
"We just need to combine properly," Mbapp said. "But we know each other off by heart and we want to play together."
Dembl has a lot of catching up to do, however, with just six international goals in 53 games.
