The Goa Spotlight Just another WordPress site
Credit, Getty Images
At €180m, Mbappé was the second most expensive transfer ever in football
England face France in the World Cup quarter-finals on Saturday (10/12) – and one player in particular is in the spotlight.
Paris St-Germain striker Kylian Mbappé is considered one of the best players in the world right now, and much is said about how he can be stopped by the English.
BBC Sport has selected seven facts you need to know about Mbappé and his meteoric rise in football.
1. He is the second most expensive player in history
In 2017, Mbappé joined PSG, initially on loan from Monaco, before making the move permanent a year later for €180m.
It is still the second most expensive transfer of all time. The only deal that cost more was the transfer of Brazilian striker Neymar, who left Barcelona for PSG in 2017, for 222 million euros (R$ 1.2 billion).
Mbappé has scored 190 goals in 237 appearances for the French champions, where he plays alongside Neymar and Argentina’s Lionel Messi.
2. He’s a serial winner
In seven years as a professional, Mbappé won the World Cup in 2018, the UEFA Nations League 2020-21, five Ligue 1 titles (four with PSG, one with Monaco), three French Cups and two French League Cups .
Individually, he won the Golden Boy award – given to the best under-21 player in Europe’s top divisions – in 2017, and has been named French player of the year twice, Ligue 1 player of the year and youth player of the year three times.
Credit, Getty Images
Mbappé is Qatar’s top scorer so far with five goals, and his total of nine at World Cups means he has already surpassed Diego Maradona, who scored eight for Argentina, and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo
He was also considered the best young player at the 2018 World Cup and was Ligue 1’s top scorer in four seasons.
In addition, he helped PSG reach their first Champions League final in 2020, although they were defeated by Bayern Munich.
3. He is used to shining in the World Cup
Mbappé was just 19 when he played a key role in France’s 2018 title campaign in Russia, scoring four goals.
His goal in a 4-2 win over Croatia made him the second youngest player to score in a World Cup final after Brazilian legend Pele in 1958.
Mbappé is Qatar’s top scorer so far with five goals, and his total of nine World Cup goals means he has already surpassed Diego Maradona, who scored eight for Argentina, and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
He is the youngest player to score nine goals at the World Cup, breaking Eusébio’s record, who scored eight for Portugal aged 24 years and 182 days.
4. He broke records at a young age
Mbappé, who was born outside Paris and started out with local team AS Bondy, made his first-team debut for Monaco in December 2015.
Aged 16 years and 347 days, he became the youngest player in the club’s history – beating the record set by France and Arsenal legend Thierry Henry in 1994 – when he came on as an 88th-minute substitute against Caen.
Three months later, he became the club’s youngest goalscorer with his first senior team goal against Troyes. Who had the previous record? Henry.
5. He’s super fast
During France’s 3-1 victory over Poland in the Round of 16, his top speed recorded was 35.3 km/h and, prior to Sunday’s game, only six players had recorded faster sprints in this year’s World Cup. year.
In September, Ligue 1 said he was the fastest player in the league this season at 36 km/h.
To put this in context, Jamaican Usain Bolt set his 100m world record — of 9.58 seconds in 2009 — with an average speed of 37.58 km/h.
6. He turned down a transfer to Real Madrid
After a long trial from Real Madrid, Mbappé decided to stay in Paris and sign a new three-year contract.
According to Spanish football expert Guillem Balague, the two clubs were willing to pay 150 million euros (R$ 825 million) for the signing.
However, he has not ruled out a move to the Spanish and European champions in the future, telling the BBC in May that his dream of playing for Real Madrid “never ended”.
7. A Humble Global Star
In October, Mbappé topped Forbes’ list of the world’s highest-paid soccer players – the first time anyone other than Messi or Ronaldo has been number one in nine years.
It is estimated that he earns US$ 128 million (R$ 672 million) this season.
Mbappé is also popular on social media, with around 100 million followers on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
He was also named, alongside Ronaldo, Messi and Neymar, as the most influential footballers on Instagram playing in the 2022 World Cup.
His iconic crossed arms and knee-sliding celebration appeared in the FIFA 21 game, and he became the youngest athlete to appear solo on the game’s cover, before returning for the 2022 edition.
After winning the World Cup four years ago, Mbappe announced he had donated his entire £380,000 salary from the tournament to a children’s charity.
