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The showdown between Argentina and France will pit together Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi together. The young Frenchman is gearing to take the throne of the ‘best’ from La Pulga and in the eyes of Graeme Souness, it is a task too great for the former to achieve.
Apart from the world title, both Mbappe and Messi are also engrossed in the battle for the golden boot. They have five goals to their name with the Argentine leading with three assists to his name while his PSG teammate having one fewer.
Alongside Erling Haaland and Neymar Jr before them, the Frenchman has been hailed as Messi’s heir. However, the qualities offered on the pitch are different and the Liverpool legend believes it is a gulf too big to overcome for the PSG starlet.
Souness believes Mbappe does not have a conducive environment at Parc des Princes to make the leap. Calling the shots at such a tender age, including the coaching staff, is holding the Paris native back.
“But though people are suggesting that Mbappe will inherit the Argentinian’s crown as the world’s greatest player, I really don’t think we’ll be putting that 23-year-old in the same bracket as Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Pele and Diego Maradona, ten years from now,” Souness said in conversation with the Daily Mail.
“Part of the problem is the power and wealth that Mbappe possesses at his club. When you’re a 23-year-old footballer, you need someone to be saying ‘no’ to you on a regular basis. But he is earning unimaginable money at a club so desperate to keep him that he calls the shots on some of the key appointments.”
“… If he’s deciding who the coaches are and how the club is run, it’s a recipe for the whole thing imploding around his ears. For that reason alone, I very much doubt the will get any better.”
Match Messi and Ronaldo’s consistency
Ricardo Kaka took home the Ballon d’Or in 2007 with Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo also on the podium. This set forward a time period of dominance by the latter two, who shared the conversation of the ‘best’ for more than a decade.
Both players are on the wrong side of 35 and are seeing their power wane. Messi is out of the comforts of Barcelona while Ronaldo just terminated his contract with Manchester United. However, they gave the world magical displays consistently, a trait missing in Mbappe’s returns.
It's always respect between Mbappe and Messi 🤝 pic.twitter.com/n0C01Tppqo
— GOAL (@goal) December 16, 2022
Consistency will determine the Frenchman’s legacy in world football, an attribute he has failed to showcase regularly. Moreover, he relies on his explosive pace to inflict damage on his rivals, a characteristic he will lose with age.
Souness believes this sets Mbappe apart from Messi and Ronaldo and needs to live up to these standards to make his claim to being the greatest of all time.
“Messi has done special things every time he’s set foot on a field and it’s his level of consistency which has put him up there for 20 years in a two-man contest with Cristiano Ronaldo for the right to be called ‘the GOAT.’
“That’s the challenge Messi is laying down for Mbappe. Not to perform in every other game. To perform in every game. In the big moments. In every Champions League match. And, though it’s an inferior league, in every French League match.
“The biggest asset Mbappe has is that explosive power but this is as good as it will get for him. He won’t get quicker as he ages. Only slower. The big question, going forwards, can he modify his game as that pace diminishes?”
Don’t be sad bro, everybody is proud of what you did, you made history. ❤️ @AchrafHakimi pic.twitter.com/hvjQvQ84c6
— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe) December 14, 2022
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