Kylian Mbappé has his say on Cristiano Ronaldo comparison

It’s no secret that Kylian Mbappé spent his childhood idolising Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid. Now, in his first season with the club, the Frenchman has already matched CR7’s debut goal tally in Madrid.

Mbappé scored twice against Leganes on Saturday, earning his team a hard-fought 3-2 victory at the Santiago Bernabeu. That brace takes his 2024/25 total to 33 goals in all competitions, the same number that Ronaldo managed in his first season.

“It’s very special,” Mbappé said, when asked about the milestone. “The most important things are the ones you do with the team, but to score the same number of goals as Cristiano is always good. We know what Cristiano represents for Real Madrid and for me."

“We always talk, he gives me advice. It’s good to score goals, but as I always say, we have to win trophies here.”

Are we seeing the best of Mbappé at Madrid?

Mbappé’s 33 goals for Real Madrid have come in 45 appearances and the team looks set to challenge for silverware late into the season. Los Blancos have already won the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Intercontinental Cup but the three major honours - LaLiga, Copa del Rey, Champions League - are all still within reach.

Having thrived playing off the left flank with both Paris Saint-Germain and the French national team, it wasn’t initially clear where Mbappé would feature for Madrid. Vinicius Jr and Jude Bellingham both favour the left side, meaning that Mbappé has been pushed further upfield and deployed as a more traditional No. 9 by head coach Carlo Ancelotti.

There were times, particularly during a brief dry spell in the fall, when Mbappé looked a little uncomfortable with his new posting. However that did not last long and Mbappé has lived up to the billing. It’s not even April yet and the Frenchman has already eclipsed Ronaldo’s debut season tally, however his focus remains fixed on the prospect of lifting major trophies with the club.

“We’ve been working all year for this moment,” Mbappé said. “We’ll give everything to win games and all the trophies we can.

“It’s always difficult after the international break, you have one rhythm with your club, you go away with your national team and it’s something else. But we know what we always have to do: win.”

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