Karim Benzema (36 years old), former legendary Real Madrid striker (2009-2023), explained at length why Kylian Mbappé has struggled to convince since his arrival in Spain this summer. According to him, he is not a center forward.
Karim Benzema spoke at length to the Spanish show El Chiringuito on Monday. And the former legendary Real Madrid striker (2009-2023) now at Al-Ittihad, had a lot to say about Kylian Mbappé, not entirely convincing in his new Madrid colors since his arrival last summer. For the 2022 Ballon d’or, this is explained above all by a positioning problem.
“He is not a center forward”
“For me, the problem is that he is not a center forward. Mbappé is not,” insists the former Lyonnais. “Every time he plays 9 with the selection, it’s not good. It’s not his position. But the problem is that on the left there is a boy who looks like him. At the same level, Vinicius. Then there is a problem…”
And according to him, it is not up to the Brazilian to make room. “I think Vinicius cannot be placed as ‘9’ or on the right,” he continues. “Because in every match he makes the difference on the left. Ancelotti knows a lot and we will see how he does that. The solution? Mbappé is not a pure ‘9’. I understand people, they ask a lot of things . There’s a lot of pressure, it’s not PSG.”
The former French international (97 caps, 37 goals) provides some little advice to his former partner with the Blues. “Kylian, you must not give up,” he says. “Because I don’t think Vinicius is going to move. He is currently the best in the world. And the boy cannot be moved. They have to make Mbappé understand that he is now a ‘9’ and that he forgets the left. Let him move with Vinicius, alternating. He was always very good when he was on the left but now he has to be very good elsewhere on the pitch.
For “KB9”, Mbappé must above all learn to deal with the enormous expectations that weigh on his shoulders in Spain. “The pressure is very difficult. It was different for me, I was 21 (when he joined Real, editor’s note). It’s not the same as Mbappé who is 25. He knows he knows There’s a lot of pressure in Madrid if you don’t score a goal for two or three games, they’ll kill you. You can win the Ballon d’Or or whatever you want, if you go three games without scoring, again. … He has to learn to live with the pressure, which is very strong at Real Madrid. He has to put this pressure on himself in every match, each match is new. He has to score goals, they brought you in to score goals. goals only. He has the level and he has everything to achieve it.”
