The comments of Kylian Mbappe on the Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo controversy have reappeared online
The Paris Saint-Germain and France superstar is one of the leading candidates to carry on the heritage of the two iconic players, who have a combined 12 Ballon d’Or victories.
The 24-year-old grew up idolizing Cristiano Ronaldo, having many posters of him on the walls of his home and obsessively viewing footage of him as a child.
He even met the Portuguese legend as a 14-year-old while dressed in Real Madrid gear. But, a decade later, Mbappe was friends with Messi at PSG and facing him in one of the greatest World Cup finals in history between Argentina and France.
And the former Monaco player has confessed that growing up taught him to realize how talented Messi is.
“I love Cristiano and I was a big fan of him when I was young but I started to learn about Messi too because when you are a big fan of Cristiano when you are young, you can’t see how Messi is good because you love Cristiano.
“But I grew up and I like both now.”
Mbappe’s former PSG teammate Abdou Diallo previously stated, “If you mention Lionel Messi against Cristiano, Mbappe will debate with you for at least an hour.”
But, as much as he admires Messi and Ronaldo, who have dominated football for the past 15 years, Mbappe is all about forging his own way.
In 2021, he revealed that because of his mentality and ambition to be the best, he tells himself that he is superior to both players.
He told RMC Sport: “Every time I go on a pitch I always tell myself that I’m the best and yet I have played on grounds where there was Messi and Cristiano (Ronaldo).
“They are better players than me, they have done a billion more things than me. But in my head, I always tell myself that I’m the best because that way, you don’t give yourself limits and you try to give your best.”
Mbappe, who stayed at PSG despite a summer controversy in which he appeared to want to leave, has 288 career goals and a World Cup win to his record.
