Why the World Cup drives Kylian Mbappé | OneFootball

At 27, Kylian Mbappé is excelling at a third World Cup in a third role, now leading France’s line in the United States and already on four goals from two games.

According to L'Équipe, his output has travelled with him positionally, after starring from the right in 2018 during the triumph in Russia, then from the left in 2022 in Qatar when he finished top scorer with eight.

On Monday, Didier Deschamps compared his captain with the tournament’s other headline acts and said records exist to be broken. He noted Mbappé has reached 100 caps and, while he may not play as long as Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, he will keep scoring as long as he is on the pitch.

Mbappé’s bond with Deschamps underpins his readiness to play wherever the staff ask. In 2018 he accepted extra defensive work after a video debrief of the opening 2-1 win over Australia, appreciating that the warning came privately before being raised to the group.

Since then, his coaches, Deschamps included, have largely parked the debate over his tracking back and built balance around him. In Qatar, Adrien Rabiot’s work on the left protected that flank.

To Mbappé, tallies only matter if France lift the trophy on 19 July. He has repeated that the aim is collective and the engine is the group. All the same, his goals frame the Bleus’ campaign and leave him two behind Messi, who is on 18 and raises the World Cup scoring record with every match.

Source: L'Équipe