Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, a French superstar, is among the prominent figures expected to carry on the legacy of two legendary players with a combined total of 12 Ballon d’Or wins.
It’s widely known that the 24-year-old grew up idolizing Cristiano Ronaldo, adorning his room walls with multiple posters of the Portuguese superstar and tirelessly watching his footage during his formative years. When he was just 14 years old, Mbappe even had the chance to meet Ronaldo while sporting Real Madrid attire. However, a decade later, Mbappe found himself playing alongside Lionel Messi at PSG and facing off against him in one of the most memorable World Cup finals in history, when Argentina took on France.
Mbappe has acknowledged that as he grew older, he began to truly appreciate the extraordinary talent of Messi. He stated, “I love Cristiano and was a huge fan of him when I was young. But I started to appreciate Messi too because when you idolize Cristiano as a young fan, it’s hard to recognize how good Messi is, because your love is for Cristiano. But as I grew up, I came to admire both.”
Former PSG teammate Abdou Diallo had previously spoken about Mbappe’s strong opinions in the Messi vs. Ronaldo debate, saying, “If you bring up Lionel Messi versus Cristiano, Mbappe will engage in a debate with you for at least an hour.”
Despite his respect for the accomplishments of Messi and Ronaldo, who have dominated football for over 15 years, Mbappe is focused on forging his own unique path. In 2021, he revealed that he always tells himself he’s better than both players due to his mentality and determination to be the best. Mbappe explained to RMC Sport, “Every time I step onto the pitch, I tell myself that I am the best, even though I have played alongside Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. They are better players than me; they have achieved a billion more things than me. But in my mind, I always remind myself that I am the best because it allows me to break free from limitations and strive to give my very best.”
Mbappe, who opted to remain at PSG despite a summer filled with transfer speculations suggesting he might depart, boasts an impressive tally of 288 career goals and a 2018 World Cup victory to his name.