Mourinho backs Mbappe after Mao remark apology, says silence often safest

Real Madrid head coach Jose Mourinho has backed Kylian Mbappe's handling of the fallout from the forward's remarks about Mao Zedong, telling his pre-match news conference that the player and club responded responsibly after the comments drew anger in China and beyond.

Mbappe apologised after saying on the French talk show The Bridge that the meme that made him laugh most showed his face superimposed on an image resembling Mao Zedong, described on the programme as a "Chinese dictator." Mao died in 1976. A clip of the exchange spread on social media and prompted a backlash, with a number of Chinese brands dropping the forward.

In his apology, Mbappe called the comments "ill-judged" and said he now understood they hurt many people in China and in Chinese communities worldwide. Mourinho, speaking before Sunday's La Liga match at Racing Santander, said the episode reflected the dangers of today's world, where saying or commenting on many things carries risk and keeping quiet is often the best course.

The Portuguese manager, who won La Liga in 2011-12 in his first spell at Real, said he had seen Mbappe act very responsibly toward a club he described as truly first-class at this level, adding there was nothing more for Real to do. Asked whether he feared being misrepresented by AI-generated fake clips of himself and Mbappe, Mourinho said he did not worry, citing his club and player and praising both for reacting immediately with class.

Supporters' reaction to the affair was not uniform, with some fans viewing the swift apology as an appropriate response and others continuing to criticise the original remark online. Those reactions remain opinion rather than verified fact; the confirmed elements are Mbappe's statement, the brands' decisions and Mourinho's public comments.

Source: BBC Sport

Image: Getty Images / BBC Sport