Champions League – 31 goals before 23 years old: But where will Mbappé stop in the scorers’ ranking? – Eurosport FR

Patrick Kluivert (29), Roy Makaay (29), David Trezeguet (29), Francisco Gento (30), Wayne Rooney (30), Kaká (30) and Samuel Eto’o (30): these are the victims of Mbappé’s gala Tuesday, those definitively demoted behind the French rocket. By scoring his 30th and then his 31st goal in the competition, the Parisian number 7 has inevitably approached the Top 20 of the best scorers of C1, for the moment fixed at 35 goals and closed by Mohamed Salah and Edinson Cavani. This dazzling progression is inevitably unprecedented. According to Opta, he became the youngest player (22 years and 352 days to be precise) to cross the barrier of 30.

But the most impressive is ultimately still elsewhere (yes). In 51 Champions League matches, he managed to be decisive … 50 times: 31 goals, 19 assists. Since arriving on the circuit in 2016-2017, only Cristiano Ronaldo, Robert Lewandowski and Lionel Messi have done better. In short, Mbappé is part of the cream, nothing new. But can he overcome them all?

Gerd Müller by the end of the season?

Goals level, Mbappé now arrives in heights where the gaps are clearer. In front of him, Fernando Morientes (33 goals) is within close range, as is Gerd Müller (34). For this, it will undoubtedly require a course that continues after a tricky round of 16 but where it sparkled last year. A perfectionist at heart, the little prince of Bondy will perhaps be keen to match his best statistical performance over a season, also achieved last year (8). But let’s take the crazy (and not necessarily relevant) bet of projecting yourself a little.

In detail, here are Kylian Mbappé’s stats in the Champions League.

• 2016-2017 (AS Monaco): 9 matches, 6 goals
• 2017-2018 (PSG): 8 matches, 4 goals
• 2018-2019 (PSG): 8 matches, 4 goals
• 2019-2020 (PSG): 10 matches, 5 goals
• 2020-2021 (PSG): 10 matches, 8 goals
• 2021-2022: 6 matches, 4 goals

Over a season, his average therefore seems to be around five goals / season, even if his recent dynamics have prompted a slight reassessment. If we stay at this purely fictitious average, Mbappé would not reach the 100 goal mark until … 2035, the year of his 37 years if no injury or absence penalizes him. Without taking into account either the caliber of the team in which he will play. Calculation of apothecary certainly but which nevertheless reflects the need for him to increase his goal / match ratio, if he wants to finish in front of the greatest.

Messi and Ronaldo still very far at the same age

Because with 0.61 goal / match, his performance remains lower than the top three in the standings who nevertheless have many more matches on the clock: Cristiano Ronaldo and his 140 pawns in 181 matches (0.77), Leo Messi and his 125 achievements in 154 matches (0.81) and Robert Lewandowski with his 82 celebrations in 101 matches (0.81).

In other words, Mbappé will have to increase the pace, and quickly, to afford editions as crazy as those of CR7 in 2013-2014 (17) or as Lewandowski in 2019-2020 (15). For that, it will be necessary to succeed in being successful in the final phase but also undoubtedly to do a little more in the group phase where the adversity is lower. It will also, without doubt, become an assertive penalty taker even if Karim Benzema has long been a magnificent counter-example.

With his 31 goals, Mbappé only reached 22% of the gargantuan total of the incredible Cristiano Ronaldo. Incredible but above all not untouchable? After all, the Frenchman can be reassured with his insane split times. At the same age as him, CR7 had eight small goals while Messi was already building up with 25 pawns. So, to exceed them, Mbappé knows the recipe: to continue to make each innocuous evening a historic advance.