Olaleye Idowu
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has backed Kylian Mbappe to reach Cristiano Ronaldo’s level at the club.
The Italian, however, added that such a feat would not come on a platter of gold, as the Frenchman would need to dedicate himself to hard work.
Ancelotti said it would not be easy for the former Paris Saint-Germain forward to match the Portuguese but believes the striker can get there.
The former Chelsea and Everton boss also believes that multiple players can make a difference on the pitch, just like Ronaldo.
Ancelotti said via 90Min:
“Mbappe has a lot of quality and can match Cristiano, yes, but Cristiano set the bar very high.
“Mbappe is just starting out at Madrid; he’s enthusiastic. But it’s not going to be that easy for Mbappe to reach Cristiano’s level—he has to work.
“Everyone was waiting for this hat-trick from him, and it has finally arrived. But Mbappe is not the only one; we have many players who make a difference.
“And they make a difference with their collective work above their individual quality, which is remarkable.”
Mbappe scored a hat-trick to help Ancelotti’s side beat Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City 3-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu in the second leg of the Champions League play-off between the two sides on Wednesday.
It was the Frenchman’s first hat-trick for Los Blancos since he arrived in the summer of 2024 on a free transfer from PSG after running down his contract.
Mbappe has, on multiple occasions, stated that Cristiano Ronaldo is his football idol, while the Portuguese, on the other hand, had promised to help him.
“If I was at Madrid, I’d show him how to play as a number nine. I wasn’t a forward. I got used to it…” Ronaldo said in a recent interview.
