Key Takeaways
- As the story and the backlash grew, the Real Madrid striker issued a statement acknowledging that his comment was ill-judged and that it hurt many people in China.
- Real Madrid also apologised on Mbappé’s behalf, while La Liga sought to ease the fallout.
- Up next for a slice of humble pie, Jamie Carragher, who drew the ire of both fans and the owners of Aston Villa when he linked Unai Emery with replacing dead man walking Michael Carrick at Manchester United on the Stick to Football podcast.
- Jack Grealish has been urged to apologise to his teammates, the fans, and manager David Moyes after being left out of the Everton squad for their Carabao Cup game against Newcastle.
By Lee Hagan | The Straight Re(a)d | November 5, 2026
Saying sorry is supposedly a sign of emotional intelligence, self-awareness, and humility, three adjectives you wouldn’t normally associate with the average professional footballer. Sometimes, however, it’s the only route out of a sticky situation, the best way to right a wrong, and the most pragmatic approach if you want to get people off your back.
Sorry Street: Kylian Mbappé
Our first visitor to Sorry Street is Kylian Mbappé, who was forced to backtrack following backlash to his comments on a French talk show in which he referenced a meme of Mao Zedong, calling the former leader of the Chinese Communist Party a ‘dictator’. Needless to say, his comments went down like a lead balloon in China, with several Chinese companies quickly releasing statements announcing that they were ending agreements with the French star.
Read next Real Madrid Turn El Clásico Momentum Into a 36-Minute Rout as Diomande Fuels the Title Chase
As the story and the backlash grew, the Real Madrid striker issued a statement acknowledging that his comment was ill-judged and that it hurt many people in China. He then apologised to everyone that his words upset, adding that this was not his intention and that he had deep respect for the Chinese people and their history, before reiterating for those at the back or living in rural areas with limited access to Wi-Fi that he was really, really sorry.
Real Madrid also apologised on Mbappé’s behalf, while La Liga sought to ease the fallout. But that didn’t stop China’s state broadcaster CCTV from pulling La Liga matches at the weekend, preventing any fans Mbappé may still have in China from seeing him earn and score a penalty and hit the post in Real Madrid’s 3-0 away win over Racing Santander.
Mindful that my articles are very popular in China, I’m going to judiciously leap forward now and save any jokes for the next section.
Jamie Carragher Serves Up a Slice of Humble Pie
Up next for a slice of humble pie, Jamie Carragher, who drew the ire of both fans and the owners of Aston Villa when he linked Unai Emery with replacing dead man walking Michael Carrick at Manchester United on the Stick to Football podcast.
After saying that there was a pecking order in football (Real Madrid are above Manchester United, who are above Aston Villa, who are above [insert smaller team here], who are above [insert even smaller team here]), he then added insult to injury by telling critics of his comments to shut up.
Aston Villa’s owners threatened to initiate legal action against the former England defender, so he apologised for using ‘clumsy and wrong’ language, saying his foot-in-mouth comments were tongue in cheek. Villa subsequently decided not to pursue legal action.
Foot in mouth, tongue in cheek; I’m afraid Aston Villa chairman Nassef Sawiris has his head in the sand if he thinks there isn’t a grain of truth in what Carragher said, and, ironically, his over-the-top reaction was one that you might expect from a smaller club. If he’d only turned to Aston Villa’s biggest fan, Prince William, for advice on maintaining a dignified silence, he might have come out of the whole affair better.
Jack Grealish and the Art of Saying Sorry
Jack Grealish has been urged to apologise to his teammates, the fans, and manager David Moyes after being left out of the Everton squad for their Carabao Cup game against Newcastle. Apparently, Grealish missed training in the lead-up to the 3-1 victory, prompting Moyes to wield the axe.
The football world is littered with the bodies of players who never fulfilled their potential (Dele Alli’s career springs to mind); it would be a shame if Britain’s first £100 million player went from Manchester City to Everton to (insert smaller team here) to (insert even smaller team here).
Matchday 9: The Premier League Apology Tour
And so, on to Matchday 9 in the Premiership:
Continue the Soccer Story
SoccerCristiano Ronaldo Announces Portugal Retirement After 234 Caps and 146 Goals, Ending a 23-Year Era
La LigaReal Madrid Turn El Clásico Momentum Into a 36-Minute Rout as Diomande Fuels the Title Chase
MLSMLS Decision Day 2026 Preview: Six Teams Fight for Three Playoff Spots as Messi and Nashville Chase HistoryManchester United’s sorry run of form continued with a 2-0 defeat to Chelsea, Lisandro Martínez doing his bit to help Chelsea put a poor week behind them by giving away a needless penalty and getting sent off. United are now only out of the relegation zone on goal difference.
It’s a bit over the top to suggest that Sunderland might be sorry to have qualified for the Europa League, but questions will inevitably be asked after a 3-1 defeat to newly promoted Coventry left them rooted to the bottom of the table. The Black Cats got the cream, including a December date with European royalty in AC Milan, but coping with the extra games/travel/pressure is a different beast entirely.
At the other end of the table, Alexander Isak must be very sorry that he didn’t take a tumble after Timber pulled his shirt inside the box. The Swedish striker missed the ball, missed out on a penalty, and Liverpool missed the chance to close the gap at the top in their 1-0 defeat.
Who have I missed?
Elsewhere, Manchester City messed up again, following up last week’s defeat to Aston Villa with a home loss to Brighton, Jean-Philippe Mateta was dismissed in Crystal Palace’s 2-0 loss to Spurs, who have now won three on the bounce, and a mistake by goalkeeper James Trafford helped Bournemouth beat Leeds 2-0. Bournemouth have now won six matches in a row in all competitions, doing so without conceding.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Sorry Goodbye
Finally, away from the English league, Cristiano Ronaldo’s international career came to a rather sorry (and messy) ending as he announced his retirement from Portugal duty. The 41-year-old forward has scored 146 goals and won 234 caps for his country, both men’s international world records, since making his debut in 2003, but walked out of the Portugal camp in September after being told he would not be starting the Nations League match against Denmark, having already been left on the bench against Norway.
