Former Paris Saint Germain legend Pauleta feels that Lionel Messi’s arrival at the French capital may see Kylian Mbappe’s numbers going down in the attack. The Frenchman will have to accept the role given to him as his goal contribution may go down, with the end product being spread in three world class players playing together in attack.
After all the transfer rumours and discussions regarding Mbappe’s future, PSG were hell-bent on not accepting any offers for the Frenchman. The 22-year-old’s desire to join Real Madrid is pretty clear but for another season he will remain at the Parc des Princes, alongside Neymar Junior and Lionel Messi.
A lot of people are still in shock after they saw Lionel Messi joining PSG. However, the Argentina talisman’s inclusion has only made the Parisians all the more formidable in attack as they target the Champions League.
Speaking about the situation in attack PSG legend Pauleta who was a prolific goalscorer during his time at PSG shared his thoughts on Mbappe on the Ligue 1’s official website. He said, “He (Mbappe) will have to adapt.”
“But he will grow a lot with Lionel Messi at Paris Saint-Germain. If he has the intelligence to move well, taking advantage of the spaces created by Messi and Neymar, he will often find himself in a good situation thanks to their quality of passing and he will therefore be able to score many goals.
“The fact that he can play either on the side or in the middle will be an asset. That said, there is always a risk that one of the three will score less. If that’s the case for Kylian, he’ll have to accept it.”
Mbappe joined PSG in 2018, in the same transfer window where the Parisians made a record breaking bid to lure away Neymar from Barcelona. Since then Mbappe has been ruthless in front of goal. He has netted 135 goals in 175 appearances for the club.
He alongside Neymar Jr. have taken the team to their maiden Champions League final in the 2019-20 season. Although they lost to Bayern Munich, the experience was priceless for the 22-year-old. Things have changed a lot since then and now with Messi in the roster, the Parisians are aiming for the maiden continental glory.
