'Kylian Mbappe Is The Rightful Heir To Cristiano Ronaldo And Lionel Messi's Throne'

Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe has been branded as the "rightful heir" to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's throne in the footballing world.

That's according to BT Sport pundit Steve McManaman, who has hailed Mbappe as an "incredible, incredible footballer."

Messi and Ronaldo have established themselves as two of the finest players in football history after achieving incredible accomplishments in their respective careers.

Mbappe, 22, has since emerged as one of Europe's biggest stars alongside Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland.

The PSG forward, who has been in sensational form this season, scored twice on Wednesday as his side sealed an important 3-2 win over Bayern Munich.

Mbappe's Champions League performance against Bayern followed on from his stunning hat-trick against Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the round-of-16 stage.

McManaman now believes that the French World Cup winner's claim to Messi and Ronaldo's throne is "going to happen now or next year."

However, the 49-year-old former Liverpool and Real Madrid midfielder says Mbappe might need to move from PSG if he wants to live up to that potential.

"I don't know whether he can keep improving at PSG," McManaman said.

"I think he's an incredible, incredible footballer. He's the rightful heir to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi's throne, which is going to happen now or next year.

"His numbers are fantastic. I just don't know whether he needs to leave and go to a more accomplished team, not just a team littered with a couple of stars but a really compact group of individuals to take him to the next level.

"Maybe it's a bit strange saying that, seeing what he's achieved already.

"But I feel if he went to a team like Bayern he could really excel and kick on again, and get to the numbers to usurp a Lionel Messi."

Mbappe's future at the Parisian club remains in doubt ahead of his contract expiring next summer.

The France international, who was signed from Monaco in a whopping £165.7m deal, has been heavily linked with Real Madrid in recent seasons.

BT Sport pundit Owen Hargreaves believes PSG are "under a lot of pressure" to sign Mbappe to a new deal and fend off any rival competition for their star forward.

"He's only got a year left on his contract, everyone is going to want to be queuing up because on that form he's unplayable," he said.

"It would be a cut-price [if he leaves this summer]. They're under a lot of pressure PSG.

"For PSG and Pochettino that performance is key for them because hopefully they can find a way to tie them both down. Neymar at 29 is probably not as essential as Mbappe.

"At 22, that doesn't happen and Mbappe has all the cards, he just has to decide what he wants to do."

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Paris Saint-Germain, Football, Ligue 1, PSG, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, France, Cristiano Ronaldo

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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