Kylian Mbappe has showed that he is a special player both on and off the pitch after donating his full £380,000 World Cup wage to charity.
The Paris Saint-Germain star played a crucial role in guiding France to the final before scoring against Croatia in the 4-2 win at the Luzhniki Stadium in July.
Les Bleus then lifted the biggest prize in football courtesy of Mbappe’s four goals in Russia.
While it is common for England players to donate their wages, the same cannot be said for other countries but Mbappe has gone against the grain after selflessly donating his full tournament earnings to a children’s charity.
‘I did not need to be paid. I was there to defend the colors of the country,’ he told Vivienne Walt from TIME.
‘Also, I earn enough money – a lot of money. So I think it is important to help those who are in need. A lot of people are suffering, a lot of people have diseases. For people like us, giving a helping hand to people is not a big thing.
‘It doesn’t change my life, but it changes theirs. And if it can change theirs, it is a great pleasure.
‘I gave the money to the charity where I am a sponsor [Mbappe sponsors the French charity Premiers de Cordée] because being handicapped is something difficult. Showing them that they can do sports like everyone it is something close to my heart.’
Mbappe continued his heroics for his country when he scored a last-minute penalty to spare France’s blushes against Iceland on Thursday.
Iceland took a shock lead on the half-hour mark after Birkir Bjarnason put the visitors in front before they doubled their lead in the second half.
An Holmar Orn Eyjolfsson own goal and Mbappe’s 90th-minute spot-kick saw the game finish 2-2 at the Stade du Roudourou.