Al-Nassr star Cristiano Ronaldo is backing Kylian Mbappe to thrive at Real Madrid following the French striker’s summer move to Spain. While discussing Mbappe’s transition to his new team, Ronaldo also subtly criticized PSG, Mbappe’s former club.
“Real Madrid are not PSG, that I can tell you,” he said while speaking about how different will be Mbappe’s experience in Spain.“There is a different environment, but I believe he will do well,” he explained.
Ronaldo, who played with Los Blancos for nine seasons and won four Champions League with them, had previously said on his YouTube channel that Madrid is the “best club ever” and that they have a different “aura” when it comes to big matches, especially in the Champions League.
“Madrid is the kind of team [that] they don’t rush under pressure. People say they’re lucky in the Champions [League]. No they are not lucky. They’re prepared for this kind of moment. The Bernabéu has that different aura,” he said.
Kylian Mbappe celebrates scoring against Real Betis ( Denis Doyle/Getty Images)
In that same video, he also said that he expects Mbappe to adapt well at Madrid, which has a “nice” structure. “They have a great coach and the president, Florentino [Pérez], who has been there many many years. I think it won’t be a big problem because of his talent,” he explained.
Ronaldo says Mbappe can win Ballon d’Or
Ronaldo also said that Mbappe “can be the next golden ball [Ballon d’Or] winner. Him, [Erling] Haaland, [Jude] Bellingham, Lamine [Yamal].” However, he was cautious to say that Madrid would automatically be better with him.
“Now, if you say that Madrid is going to be better or not, we don’t know. Mbappé is there now, I think Madrid will keep strong, but I don’t know if they will be better than last year. Only God knows,” he explained.
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Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has noted that the team is still adjusting to life with Mbappe. Meanwhile, the striker demonstrated progress by scoring twice against Real Betis before the international break.
