Mbappé: Why Ronaldo inspires me more than Messi

Kylian Mbappé (21) revealed in an interview with the Italian “Gazzetta dello Sport”, which superstar impresses him the most.

“Without wishing to diminish Messi’s performance, I must draw my inspiration from Cristiano’s career,” said the Paris Saint-Germain attacking star, explaining why Ronaldo’s career is more in line with his own than that of Barça superstar Lionel Messi: “It’s too late for me to make a career like Messi. I should have stayed at AS Monaco for that.”

Mbappé had left his youth club in 2017 to join PSG, but Messi has played exclusively for FC Barcelona since the age of 14.

Ronaldo, who has been under contract with Juventus Turin since 2018, is a guarantee of success for Mbappé, he said. “Juventus have always lacked something that gave them the edge, and now they have that in Cristiano. He’s a player who will make sure you win more trophies.”

The idol of his youth, however, was neither of the two superstars. “If you’re French, of course, you grow up with Zidane as your role model. Then came Cristiano, who I was allowed to play against, at club level and with the national team,” said Mbappé.