Kylian Mbappe and Achraf Hakimi walk around streets of New York in disguise, nobody had a clue
The PSG pair were spotted in Times Square following their efforts at this winter's World Cup.
Paris Saint-Germain duo Kylian Mbappe and Achraf Hakimi were spotted watching the Times Square entertainment as they enjoyed their post-World Cup break.
A number of PSG players were granted "a few days off" by manager Christophe Galtier following Sunday's disappointing 3-1 defeat to Lens, including Hakimi and Mbappe.
The 24-year-old forward, who scored a hat-trick for France in their World Cup final defeat to Argentina last month, used his time off to visit New York with his Moroccan teammate.
And on Monday night, they both attended an NBA game between Brooklyn Nets and San Antonio Spurs, where Mbappe was given an incredible reception by fans.
After the game the PSG pair were spotted hanging around Times Square, although both players were barely recognisable, wearing a hood and face masks.
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As you can see in the footage posted by photographer Elder Ordonez below, Mbappe and Hakimi can be seen clapping to the street entertainment.
As mentioned above, Mbappe and Hakimi have been given a few days off by PSG manager Christophe Galtier to recover from their World Cup exploits.
Hakimi reached the semi-finals of this winter's tournament with surprise package Morocco before being knocked out by France, while Mbappe played seven times for the 2018 world champions, scoring eight times.
After their 3-1 defeat to Lens on Sunday – a game they both featured in – Galtier confirmed their break from first-team duties.
He said: "Hakimi and Mbappe will have a few days off. The plan was that they could play these two games. They will now recover."
Galtier added on the result: "I couldn't recognise my team. We lacked cohesion. We left a lot of space, we made a lot of technical mistakes."
Galtier also jumped to the defence of Mbappe in his post-match press conference.
He said: “Kylian made a lot of effort, even at 3-1 he showed a very good state of mind. Unfortunately, he did not manage to make the difference because in front, they defended well.
“They regrouped well in front of the surface, so there was less and less space. Facing low blocks and an opponent who has the advantage in the score, you need a lot of talent and technical accuracy.”
PSG are currently still top of Ligue 1 after 17 games played. They are four points ahead of second place Lens.
Topics: Football World Cup, France, Kylian Mbappe, Paris Saint-Germain, Achraf Hakimi
Jack Kenmare