KYLIAN MBAPPE
Teenage World Cup winner
It was quite a year for the kid from Bondy, a banlieue in the Paris suburbs, who only turned 20 in December but has achieved more in the past 18 months than most players manage in their entire careers.
The media spotlight falls on young talent at an increasingly early age, often before they have a chance to fulfill their potential. But in Mbappe’s case his talent is clear for all to see and in the summer he became only the second teenager, after Pele, to score in a World Cup Final.
His performances in Russia – notably against Argentina in the round of 16 when he was fouled for the opening goal and then scored twice himself – gave France the momentum to progress with increasing confidence through the knockout stage. In that game against the South Americans he even outshone Lionel Messi and caused all manner of problems for the opposition defence with his blistering pace.
At club level, Mbappe has threatened to overshadow his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate, world-record buy Neymar.
“Kylian is doing some extraordinary things. What he can do at such a young age is not normal,” said national coach Didier Deschamps after Mbappe’s four goals in PSG’s 5-0 thrashing of Lyon in October.
“You can’t put him in any category as a player like him only appears occasionally. I’m privileged because he’s French and he plays with us.”
Mbappe’s form has prompted speculation that if the French club are forced by Financial Fairplay (FFP) rules to sell one or the other of their two stars it would be Neymar heading for the Parc des Princes exit.
Not that PSG signed Mbappe on the cheap. The teenager had the option of moving from Monaco to Real Madrid in 2017 but the interest of the European champions was used to force up the price paid by PSG to 180million.
Recent “Football Leaks” revelations alleged that during negotiations with PSG, Mbappe and his father Wilfrid demanded a total of 55m after tax – a
5m signing bonus and a 50m salary over the course of a five-year contract.
Further allegations included a demand that the club make a private jet available to him for 50 hours per year, financial compensation in the event of PSG being banned from the Champions League for breaking FFP rules, and for Wilfrid Mbappe to be present during team training sessions.
PSG denied that the requests had been granted and Mbappe himself rejected reports that he demanded a payment of 10m from PSG to compensate him for the taxes he pays, declaring the rumours to be “totally false”.
He said: “I want to specify that I pay my own taxes in France, for all my income. For me, the important thing to see was that the club could give me the best chance to continue my progression. It was a natural decision to choose PSG.”