The Asensio-n
Mbappe. Asensio. Jesus and other rising stars are expected to shine and make waves in Russia WHEN Messi and I are gone? Mbappe, Asensio, Ras h f o r d . . . There are some very good players,” uttered Real Madrid and Portugal star Cristiano Ronaldo in an interview. With that said, those a r e s o me o f the f ootballers who are expected t o r i s e t o greatness in Russia 2018. They are not men like Brazil’s Neymar and France’s Antoine Griezmann, who are already used to leading their respective teams and carrying the hopes of a nation, but young players who are potentially rising to stardom. Ronaldo seems to be getting his preferences right. Kylian Mbappe, on loan at PSG from Monaco, with a compulsory subsequent transfer fee of £157million (RM 837m), is already one of the most expensive players on the planet. Mbappe, who t urned 1 9 i n December, is the first footballer under the age of 20 to score a brace with France since World War II. He achieved that feat in Saint Petersburg, precisely against Russia, in France’s last friendly ahead of the tournament. “The World Cup is on my mind. I am in a hurry to get there,” says the extremely young forward, who hopes to lead France’s fast attacking line at the World Cup. “His potential is off all the charts,” s ays France manager Didier Deschamps. The versatile midfielder Marco Asensio, Ronaldo’s teammate at Real Madrid, may be the only player with a similar potential to “Donatello”, as Mbappe is nicknamed at the PSG changing-room in a tribute to the establish himself with Spain at the World Cup.
“Right now there are more senior players, I want to take it step by step,” he said on the day he extended his contract with Real Madrid until June 2023.
“We are delighted with his mentality. Asensio competes brilliantly with Real Madrid, as difficult as that is,” says Spain manager Julen Lopetegui.
Behind Mbappe and Asensio, other youngsters are also set on becoming tomorrow’s stars. One of them is the Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford, who at 21 can play in any position up-front.
Very close to Old Trafford, there is the Brazilian forward Gabriel Jesus, who is starting to shine under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. At 21, Jesus has a great responsibility as Neymar’s s i dekick with t he