Birthdays can be a time for reflection on the previous 12 months, or a chance to turn the page to the year ahead. For Kylian Mbappé, the weight of past and future likely exerted equal pull on 20 December. The Paris Saint-Germain star celebrated turning 24 just two days after his greatest disappointment in a France shirt – and possibly his greatest performance too, a stunning hat-trick in the World Cup final not enough to lift the trophy for a second time.
“We’ll be back” was his terse statement on Twitter following the penalty shoot-out loss to Argentina, and certainly no one doubts that of the man himself. Not least with plenty of silverware still up for grabs this season, including the one major prize that has eluded his grasp so far. There is no time to dwell on Qatar when Paris face another journey into the Champions League knockout stage, starting with a round of 16 tie against Bayern München – the team that denied Mbappé and Co in the 2020 final.
“I’ve been lucky enough to play in every Champions League round, from the group stage to the final, so I’ve experienced every possible feeling, except the final win,” says the forward, who ended the group stage as joint-top scorer with seven goals. “I just have one feeling left to experience, and it really builds your character.”
Experience is a commodity that Mbappé has already amassed in spades, having made his Champions League debut in September 2016 as an explosive teenager in an exciting young Monaco team. Billed as a name for the future, the French prodigy has since lived up to his promise and then some, morphing into a thoroughbred world-class performer who has added maturity and composure to his pace, technique and finishing acumen.
“You can see the evolution in my performances,” he explains, that 2020 final loss only feeding his ambition to claim the Champions League crown. “You can see I’m way more used to these sorts of matches – how to control them, how to approach them, how to play in them – and that’s really important. But the pleasure stays the same, the passion stays
the same and it’s an immense pleasure to play in this competition.”
The enjoyment has been mutual for those witnessing Mbappé’s talent at work. The youngest player to reach 20 Champions League goals before Erling Haaland came along, he capped the group stage with his 40th strike in the competition from just 59 games. Many have been spectacular and plenty more crucial, but what are his own treasured memories from Europe’s premier club tournament?
Here he pinpoints four matches that have defined his career so far – and in one word explains why. “It’s amazing to get onto the pitch and experience these nights,” he adds. “They remain in history. We remember them and people remember them.”
Discovery
Manchester City 5-3 Monaco
21 February 2017; Round of 16, first leg
Mbappé had dipped his toe in domestic and European competition in 2015/16, but it was the following season that the hot prospect turned potential into end product. After 25 minutes on the pitch in three fleeting group stage appearances, he propelled himself into continental consciousness on his very first start in the competition. Aged just 18 years and 63 days, Mbappé smashed a rising shot beyond Willy Caballero five minutes before the break, his first of six goals in as many appearances to help Monaco reach the last four.
“Manchester City versus Monaco in one word? Discovery. It was my first start in the Champions League, and the first leg of the round of 16 in the knockout phase against [Pep] Guardiola’s City. It was a unique moment with the club where I started out, and for whom I have a great deal of respect, admiration and gratitude. I would love it if everyone could experience that with the club where they developed as a player.
“It’s a unique feeling. I scored my first Champions League goal that evening. My performance was good. We lost but still got through in the end, and it will remain forever etched in my memory. It was a great goal. It was a new feeling for me, on a massive European night. I used to watch the games on TV, but that was the first time I’d actually played in one myself.
“I was obviously overwhelmingly happy at that moment. Here I was, playing in the same competition as all the greatest players. It’s the best club competition. It allows you to enter the circle of big teams and great players. The hardest part is to stay in that circle though. That was only the moment of discovery, and hopefully the start of something great.”
Challenge
Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 Bayern München
27 September 2017; Group stage
Mbappé swapped the cocoon of the principality for the cauldron of Paris in 2017. It was a return to his roots, having grown up in Bondy in the French capital’s northern suburbs. The potentially crushing combination of a large fee and huge expectations could have weighed heavily on the teenager but, following a goal on Matchday 1 at Celtic, he shrugged off both. He put his immense talent to the team’s benefit with two assists in his first European outing at the Parc des Princes.
“I’d just joined a new club, with an expensive transfer fee associated with me. It was my first European challenge at the Parc des Princes. We were up against a heavyweight team and winning at home sent a message. We really put in a good performance.
“The first [assist] was for [Edinson] Cavani. He did the harder part of the job though, with a shot into the top corner. What he did was really magical. The second was for Neymar. I managed to trick the defender with a dummy – a sort of drag-back – and a cross. Neymar was opportunistic and scored to make it 3-0. It’s a good memory. Being acclaimed by the Parc des Princes crowd was obviously special. I think it was the best way to launch my adventure in Paris.”
