Andros Townsend has hailed Kylian Mbappe as the best player in the world after he surprisingly omitted Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo out of his top three.
Mbappe, 22, established himself as one of Europe's fastest-rising stars in world football after he burst onto the scene with Monaco.
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Mbappe was lauded for his performance on Tuesday as the Frenchman scored a superb hat-trick in PSG's 4-1 win over Barcelona in the Champions League.
The PSG superstar was in fine form in the first leg of the clash at the Camp Nou as he tormented the likes of Gerard Pique with his frightening pace.
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Speaking to talkSPORT, Townsend branded Mbappe as a "special player" and admitted that he reminds him of Brazil legend Ronaldo.
The 29-year-old Crystal Palace winger explained: "Mbappe is a special, special player.
"I remember when he first came through, the criticism was he's just quick and he's got no substance to his game, but now you're starting to see a well-rounded player.
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"He's literally got everything. He reminds me of R9 [Ronaldo]; how sharp he is, how good a finisher he is, how composed he is.
"It's frightening that he's only a young kid and he's still got 10-plus years at the top level."
Townsend went on to reveal that neither Messi nor Ronaldo would be in his picks for the best three players in the world.
Joining Mbappe in the former Tottenham player's top three were Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne and PSG superstar Neymar.
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"It's sad to say because I grew up with Messi and Ronaldo, but for me at the moment, I can't put them in my top three," Townsend said.
"I'm going to go: three, Kevin De Bruyne; two, Neymar; one, Kylian Mbappe.
"Five or ten years ago, Ronaldo and Messi used to absolutely dominate games, control games and take games by the scruff of the neck.
"Now, of course, they're in their 30s; they're still hitting incredible numbers but they're not controlling games as they once were.
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"Age gets to everyone, and it's just not the same."
When he was called out by listeners for naming two injured players in his top three, Townsend responded: "I can tinker with it, but it's probably only going to get more controversial!
"In no particular order this time, I'm going Mbappe, Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah -- that's my top three players in the world right now."
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