France forward Kylian Mbappe has admitted “finding sleep will be difficult” after missing the penalty that sent the world champions crashing out of Euro 2020 against Switzerland on Monday. Trailing 3-1 on 75 minutes, the Swiss rallied back with two late goals to force extra time and held their nerve in the subsequent shootout, scoring all five of their spot kicks for goalkeeper Yann Sommer‘s save from Mbappe’s penalty to be decisive. 

“It is very difficult to turn the page. I am sorry for this penalty. I wanted to help the team but I failed. Finding sleep will be difficult, but unfortunately those are the risks of the sport that I love so much,” the 22-year-old said on Twitter. 

“I know that you, the fans, are disappointed, but I would still like to thank you for your support and always believing in us. The most important thing is to come back even stronger next time. Congratulations and good luck to the Swiss.”

Meanwhile, manager Didier Deschamps is not blaming Mbappe for France’s exit, insisting the team remains united in a moment like this. 

“Nobody can be anoyed with him,” The Guardian quoted Deschamps as saying in his post-match comments. “When you take the responsibility, it can happen. He is obviously very affected by it.”

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Mbappe was visibly disturbed following the miss and had to be consoled by his teammates. “Kylian takes responsibility, he feels guilty, but he shouldn’t. The squad is united, it always has been.”

Deschamps will have to face the music for what will be seen as a failure for his tournament favourites to crash out at the round of 16 stage of the European championships. The 52-year-old opted for an unfamiliar back three, a setup designed to get the most of their attacking trio of Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Karim Benzema. 

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However, ‘Les Bleus’ looked disjointed early in the game and went behind to a Haris Seferovic header before scoring three to comfortably lead in the clash. The 29-year-old striker kept Swiss interests alive with his second strike on the 81st minute-mark before Mario Gavranovic scored a dramatic, last-minute equaliser. 

Deschamps, who is contracted to lead France in their World Cup defence in Qatar next year, said he will take the blame for the early Euro 2020 exit. 

“That is not the question,” he said on his future. “There is a unity and solidarity in this squad. I am responsible, when things go badly, I am with them, they are with me. We will need time to manage this. There are no magic formulas, there are balances for us to find in the future.”