Legends are not made overnight. They are carved by moments and their ability to rise up to ultimate pressure situations to win games for their teams.
Kylian Mbappé is that player who is on track to become a legend of the game. He has always possessed immense talent, but having a natural gift alone is not a guaranteed path to success. Mbappé became “The Mbappé” by refining his innate abilities through unwavering discipline and relentless hard work. Though his journey looks like he tasted success too early and some consider that he might have been lucky because he played with the likes of Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kanté, and Antoine Griezmann, but success doesn’t come easy. The universe doesn’t work like that. Let’s discuss about the French superstar who is vying for the title of “future legend,” and why he is destined to become one of football’s greatest icons.
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Kylian Mbappe: The Boy For Big Moments
He is a future football legend, not only because he has won the biggest trophy in world football when he won the 2018 FIFA World Cup, but mainly due to his contribution to the success of the team. He is not just any other player in the squad, but an indispensable part of France’s team set-up.
He scored France’s only goal against Peru during Les Blues’ 1-0 win during group stage of 2018 World Cup. This made him the youngest scorer for France at World Cup tournaments, aged 19. His biggest performance came in the round-of-16 match against Lionel Messi’s Argentina. He won a penalty, and went on to score two goals as France won 4-2. In the showpiece match, the young Mbappé showed no signs of nerves as he scored France’s fourth goal during their 4-2 title win against Croatia.
Mbappe’s status as the player for the big moments kept growing. He once again starred for his team during the 2021 UEFA Nations League, proving that he was the team’s most important player. In the semifinal match against Belgium, the then 22-year-old scored an important goal as France came from behind to beat a strong Belgian side 3-2. He gave another strong performance in the final match, as he assisted a goal and scored another as France beat Spain 2-1 to lift their first Nations League title.
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Kylian Mbappe: The Man For Big Moments
When France headed to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, not only were they the defending champions, but they were also the favorites. All eyes were on Kylian Mbappé to see how he could handle the spotlight and the immense pressure, because this time, unlike 2018 when he was just a prodigy, he was France’s focal point in attack. But great players embrace pressure, and bring their best game, and Mbappé did exactly that as he elevated his game to newer heights.
Mbappé scored a total of 8 goals during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, winning the Golden Boot in the process. But the mere numbers don’t do justice to what he did in the final against Argentina. The final match will always be remembered for the magnificent duel between Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé.
Argentina had a 2-0 lead going into the last 10 minutes of the match, thanks to the goals from Lionel Messi and Angel di Maria, but the PSG superstar refused to give up, scoring two goals in the space of two minutes (80′ and 81′). His two goals forced the game into the extra time.
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When the Argentina superstar scored a goal in the 108th minute, it looked like the match was done and dusted, but Mbappe scored another goal, this time from the spot in the 118 minutes, forcing the match into penalties. The match is a history now as The Albiceleste went on to win the prestigious tournament on penalties, but Mbappé was the history maker, as he became only the 2nd player in the history of football with England’s Geoff Hurst being the other player, and France’s first to score a hat-trick in the final of a FIFA World Cup match.
Mbappe Career Stats (As of Dec 20, 2024)
| For | Appearances | Goals |
| Monaco II | 12 | 04 |
| Monaco | 41 | 16 |
| PSG | 205 | 175 |
| Real Madrid | 15 | 09 |
| France U-19 | 11 | 07 |
| France Senior | 86 | 48 |
Kylian Mbappe: Why He Is A Football Legend
Because Kylian Mbappe has won everything barring the Champions League. He won the league title with Monaco and later with the Paris Saint Germain, winning every trophy with the club. But more than the trophies, is his ability to produce peak performances in big games.
No one can argue that the World Cup is the biggest tournament and the matches carries biggest of the pressure which even some of the best players fails to handle. But Mbappe performed in these games like the fish takes to the water. He never showed signs of the situation getting the better of him. In fact, despite so young, he has outperformed many legends of the game in so many matches – like the round-of-16 match at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, when he outperformed the legend Lionel Messi.
After joining Real Madrid, Mbappe’s career is likely to touch even bigger heights. The Spanish giants win trophies in every year and that’s what Mbappe is aiming, to win the La Liga and the Champions League.
Kylian Mbappe Career
Kylian Mbappe was born on December 20, 1998, in Bondy. His father Wilfriend Mbappe is a football coach and trained his son Mbappe at AS Bondy. Even at the start of his youth career, Mbappe was faster than most of his teammates and had the incredible dribble skills. He was attracting interest from bigger French clubs, but it was Monaco that succeeded in signing Mbappé for their youth academy in 2013.
Mbappe was so talented that he broke into Monaco’s first team only two years later. On December 2, 2015, Mbappé debuted for Monaco, becoming their youngest-ever first-team player at 16 years and 347 days.
Mbappé ended the 2016–17 season with 26 goals in 44 matches, helping Monaco win Ligue 1. He was the hottest property in Europe and that promoted PSG to sign him for a staggering €180 million in 2017. He went on to represent PSG in over 200 games, scoring 175 goals.
Rea Madrid had been chasing Mbappe for years but couldn’t sign him as PSG refused to let go of of their prized asset. But the French superstar eventually signed for the Madrid giant in the summer of 2024 on a free transfer, where he was given the legendary no-9 shirt. Though he has achieved everything at the international level, he is still chasing the Champions League glory and at Madrid, the club that has win the most CL trophies, he is likely to achieve this dream.