Mbappé: "France will never let me play until I'm 41"

Kylian Mbappé has dismissed the idea of playing until the age of 41 with the France national team, like Cristiano Ronaldo. According to RMC Sport, he joked about the matter, and other media outlets report similar comments.

Cristiano Ronaldo, joueur de football

Photo: Jan S0L0 — CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (new window)

Kylian Mbappé has dismissed the idea of playing until the age of 41 with the France national team, like his idol Cristiano Ronaldo. According to RMC Sport, the forward joked about the subject: "France will never let me play until I'm 41." Italian outlet Calciomercato.com reports similar comments, in which Mbappé states that such longevity is impossible and that one must be honest. TuttoMercatoWeb and A Bola also mention these remarks, while Bola na Rede specifies that the player also spoke about Michael Olise and Antonio Rudiger.

An ambition thwarted by the national team

At 27, Mbappé does not see himself following in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo, who is still playing at an advanced age. According to TuttoMercatoWeb, he does not think France would allow him to extend his international career for that long. Bola na Rede echoes the same idea: the player reportedly rejected the notion of longevity comparable to Ronaldo's at international level.

Remarks reported by several media outlets

Mbappé's comments were picked up by several sources, with slightly different wording. RMC Sport highlights the player's joke, while Calciomercato.com stresses the realistic side of his answer. A Bola headlines the same observation: France would not let him play until he is 41. These remarks come as Mbappé is still performing at the highest level, but he already seems to be measuring the limits of his international career.

Teammates also mentioned

According to Bola na Rede, Mbappé also praised Michael Olise and Antonio Rudiger. The Portuguese outlet does not specify the exact content of those compliments, but places them in the same context as his statements about Ronaldo. This outing shows that the striker is keeping a close eye on his teammates, even though he does not plan to break longevity records.

Sources

  1. RMC SportUne longévité au plus haut niveau comme Cristiano Ronaldo? "La France ne me laissera jamais jouer jusqu’à 41 ans", plaisante Mbappé (new window)rmcsport.bfmtv.com
  2. Calciomercato.comMbappé: “Io come Cristiano Ronaldo in campo a 41 anni? Impossibile, siamo onesti. Non accadrà” (new window)calciomercato.com
  3. TuttoMercatoWebMbappe: "Con la Francia fino a 41 anni come Ronaldo? Non me lo permetterebbero..." (new window)tuttomercatoweb.com
  4. Bola na RedeKylian Mbappé elogia 2 colegas e trava ambição de igualar Cristiano Ronaldo: «A França nunca me deixará jogar até aos 41 anos» (new window)bolanarede.pt
  5. A BolaMbappé: «Ronaldo? França nunca me deixará jogar até aos 41 anos» (new window)abola.pt