Paraguayan Senator Celeste Amarilla has intensified her public feud with France forward Kylian Mbappe, delivering another scathing attack days after the striker's side edged Paraguay 1-0 in a FIFA World Cup fixture.
The dispute, which began after the World Cup encounter, escalated further after Mbappe reportedly described Amarilla as a "despicable woman and unworthy of her office." Speaking on the Senate floor on Wednesday, the senator responded by calling the French international a "son of a b****" while once again accusing him of disrespecting Paraguayan goalkeeper Orlando Gill following the match.
"When Orlando Gill, a boy who was surely setting foot in a World Cup for the first time, in Europe for the first time, was playing before the world and extends his hand with all the humility of a Paraguayan, and this son of a b---- refuses to shake his hand and yells in his face-that is not French. A Frenchman would never have done that," Amarilla stated.
Amarilla, a member of the Authentic Radical Liberal Party, also alleged that "serious racist insults" were directed at Paraguay after the defeat. Continuing her criticism of Mbappe, she contrasted the striker's alleged conduct with France's historical legacy.
"France is Rousseau, Descartes, Montesquieu, Victor Hugo, Simone de Beauvoir, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. I refuse to reduce all of that great France and that enormous cultural, artistic, and democratic legacy to Mbappe."
Earlier, Amarilla had published an open letter on her X (formerly Twitter) account in which she demanded an apology from Mbappe and warned him of potential legal consequences.
"Don't mess with Paraguayans, Mbappé," she warned, citing the case of Brazilian football icon Ronaldinho, who was jailed in Paraguay in March 2020. "We already had Ronaldinho jailed here... And don't underestimate me, Mbappé. I can sue you... Gender violence. Political violence against women. That is serious... Let him apologize to me because I still have legal grounds for that."
France head coach Didier Deschamps was questioned about the controversy during his pre-match press conference ahead of the team's FIFA World Cup quarter-final against Morocco. The French manager dismissed suggestions that the off-field dispute had affected his star forward, insisting Mbappe remained fully focused on football.
"Kylian is in a good place mentally. He's ready for tomorrow," said Deschamps in the press conference on the eve of the quarter-final match.
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