Rio Ferdinand says Kylian Mbappe is ‘out on his own’ and believes the PSG forward will ‘take over the throne’ from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo after Frenchman’s stunning hat-trick in 4-1 victory over Barcelona
- Kylian Mbappe scored a stunning hat-trick in PSG’s 4-1 victory at Barcelona
- Rio Ferdinand believes the Frenchman is out on his own in world football
- He also said he will take the throne from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
- Joe Cole claimed the forward is the best player in the world at the moment
- Owen Hargreaves also insisted PSG have to lock him down to a new contract
- The World Cup winner only has one year remaining on his current deal
Rio Ferdinand believes Kylian Mbappe is ‘out on his own’ and will ‘take the throne’ from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo after his stunning hat-trick against Barcelona.
The Frenchman helped his side come from behind to claim an emphatic victory in the first leg of their last 16 tie with the Catalans. The striker cancelled out Lionel Messi’s penalty to level the score at 1-1 in the 32nd minute.
He then gave his team the lead just after the hour mark before grabbing his hat-trick in the 85th minute after Moise Kean had made it 3-1 five minutes earlier.
Rio Ferdinand (right) believes Kylian Mbappe (left) is ‘out on his own’ when it comes to the best young players in the world
Ferdinand said the striker has shown he is the man for the big occasion and believes he is ‘standing alone’ from the rest of the best young players in the world.
‘Mbappe is on his own, out of young players he’s on his own,’ Ferdinand told BT Sport.
‘People forget he’s 22-years-old Mbappe, given he’s won the World Cup, what he’s done in the French league, in the Champions League he’s been immense.
Ferdinand also believes Mbappe will take the throne from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
‘I just feel that he’s the guy now that’s going to take the throne, take the crown, he’s standing alone at the moment. It’s for everybody to catch up to him now. This guy is going to take over the throne from Messi and Ronaldo when they’re done with it.
‘He’s given a statement, this is me now, I’m the man for this big stage.’
Mbappe has just one year remaining on his PSG contract and has been linked with a ‘dream’ move to Real Madrid in the future.
Owen Hargreaves insisted the Ligue 1 side have to tie the striker down to a new deal and compared him to the Brazilian Ronaldo.
‘Kylian Mbappe, his contract runs out in a year – PSG are going to have to lock him down real quick. Everybody is going to find enough money for Kylian Mbappe, that was a performance like the old Brazilian Ronaldo – absolutely amazing.
Owen Hargreaves insisted PSG will have to the forward down to a new contract this season
Mbappe has one year left on his PSG contract and has been linked with a move to Real Madrid
‘You’re not signing anyone other than Kylian Mbappe right now. He’s only got a year left on his deal, that’s unheard of for a player this good.
‘To go to the Nou Camp and get a hat-trick, he ripped the life out of every single Barcelona player in every phase. Mbappe, in that form, at 22 with a year left, he is an absolute diamond.’
Joe Cole also hailed Kylian Mbappe as the ‘best player in the world’ and suggested he can get even better.
‘He’s the best player in the world at the moment,’ Cole told BT Sport after the game. ‘The influence he has on his team, the way he can just run away from players.
‘His link-up play, his work-rate off the ball, he is the alpha dog in football right now. He’s the top player. As young players go, if you want to build a team you go and get Kylian Mbappe. He’s the most influential player on the planet.
‘He’s not the future, he is now – but how good could he become? He’s got 10 or 15 years ahead of him, he could be anything.’
Joe Cole described the 22-year-old as the best player in the world while Peter Crouch and Michael Owen believe he could win the Ballon d’Or this season
Michael Owen and Peter Crouch agreed that Mbappe is the stand alone player right now with the latter suggesting he has a chance of winning the Ballon d’Or this year.
Crouch said: ‘He’s done it in World Cups and he’s doing it in the Champions League now. I think if he drags Paris or Paris go on to win the tournament I think he’s in with a shout for the Ballon d’Or this year.’
Owen added: ‘It does help when you’ve won the World Cup you lay claim to it anyway but day to day stuff I think it’s got to be in one of the bigger countries.
‘If he came to the Spanish league or Premier League and did it there no one would ever question but I agree he’s the stand alone person at the minute.’
