At just 24 years old, Mbappe already has numbers that rival or surpass some of the game's all-time greats; So, even if many fans don't like him, it has to be said that Mbappe is the poster child of world football after Mero, and his statistics and accolades are reminiscent of Pele and Ronaldo, the alien.
Mbappe is reminiscent of Pele because he was a World Cup winner before he was 20; It's still a long way from Pele winning the title when he was 17, but in the current football context, it's not easy. The reason Mbappe is reminiscent of Ronaldo is largely because both have ungodly pace and impact that can intimidate opponents on the pitch. This is Serie A data. Of course, in terms of technique, Mbappe is not as good as Ronaldo; But let's face it, there are moments when Mbappe is reminiscent of Ronaldo.
In fact, Mbappe and Ronaldo are very similar when it comes to the World Cup goal accumulation - both of them have scored more than 10 goals in the World Cup and started at the same pace.
Mbappe scored four goals in his first appearance at the 2018 World Cup. He also scored four goals in the 1998 World Cup. In the 2002 World Cup, he scored 8 goals alone, breaking the spell of six golden boots since the 1978 World Cup. In the 2022 World Cup, Mbappe scored eight goals. It was like paying homage to Ronaldo in 2002.
In short, their World Cup goal accumulation pattern, at least initially, was the same: four goals in one World Cup followed by eight in the next. The 4+8 tempo killed almost all the top World Cup goalscorers in the post-black and white era.
However, there is a significant difference between the two, that is, Mbappe wasted four years less than Ronaldo.
What do you mean by that?
Quite simply, Mbappe has played in the World Cup since he was barely 20 years old and has played as a first-team player. Mbappe scored four goals at the 2018 World Cup, the first of his career. He wasted no time, so to speak.
But what about Daluo? In fact, Ronaldo's first World Cup should have been 94 World Cup, but that World Cup Ronaldo did not get any chance to play, only 18 years old, he did not get the absolute trust of Pereira. This caused resentment among many fans in Brazil at the time.
Of course, it's not that he would have scored many goals if he had played, but it's one of the regrets of his World Cup career that he didn't get a chance to play in his first World Cup. Compared to Mbappe, Ronaldo wasted four years. The 1998 World Cup was the second World Cup for Daleo-Ro, but it was the first World Cup for Daleo-ro as the main force of the siege. At the time, Luo was already 22 years old.
Therefore, in a horizontal comparison, Mbappe's 2018 World Cup should be matched by Ronaldo's 1994 World Cup. Unfortunately, in that World Cup, Ronaldo's output was zero. So, Luo can only take his second World Cup, to match Mbappe's first World Cup. It's a shame these four years have been wasted.
With a time lag of four years, the next gap is even more pronounced. At the 2006 World Cup, he was 30 years old, and his form had declined dramatically, scoring only three goals. The 2026 World Cup, Mbappe is only 28 years old, should be the most mature time. If France remain as competitive as they are, Mbappe will still have plenty of chances to score. By then, Mbappe is looking forward to chasing the object, not Ronaldo, but Klose.
However, speed players like Mbappe tend to lose competitiveness over the age of 30 if they can't find a mode of transformation. So the 2026 World Cup may be his best, last chance to score. Not counting '94, Ronaldo's pattern is 4+8+3, and Mbappe? If nothing else, after 4 plus 8, the third number is going to be bigger than Darrow's 3.