Waiting for Kylian Mbappé, ‘Kiki’, the player from district 93 | Soccer | Sports

When Kylian Mbappé arrived at the Monaco youth academy at the age of 14, for the first few months he stayed in rooms located on the ground floor of the club’s stadium, the Luis II, along with other teammates with whom he studied and trained. In those beginnings, he had a coach who required him to put pressure on his rivals, a demand that the young man did not always comply with and that frequently led him to the bench. The family did not like the situation and his father went to L’Equipe to complain, as the newspaper’s director, Lionel Dangoumau, tells in the documentary In the footsteps of Mbappé. A decade later, and already established as a world figure, another documentary, that of Luis Enrique, has revived the issue. In a passage from the piece released a few weeks ago, the PSG coach is seen asking Kiki (that’s what he calls him) before the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinal against Barcelona last season to be “an example” for his teammates and “a real leader”, and who would relentlessly pressure Cubarsí and Ter Stegen.

Carlo Ancelotti has been insisted on this in recent weeks and his message has been blunt. “I prefer him to score goals rather than press,” said the Italian. “I asked Benzema the same thing, that he position himself to try a quick transition when we recover the ball,” the coach explained about a player who this Saturday faces his first demanding night in Madrid. He receives Barcelona (9:00 p.m., DAZN; Brahim returns to a list without Rodrygo, Courtois, Carvajal and Alaba) with eight goals (the same as Vinicius), three of them from penalties, and the clear feeling that he still has room for improvement. In several phases, he has been seen having difficulty connecting to the team’s game.

“Little by little he is looking for his best version,” Carletto commented this Friday. “We are in no hurry, neither I, nor the squad nor him. We are satisfied with what he is doing. Obviously, he is going to do better because he has all the qualities,” he added in the wake of Vini’s display against Dortmund. That night, after what happened in the European matchday, Thierry Henry passed the scanner on to his compatriot. “Is he playing his best football like at PSG? No. He has to learn,” he said. “I know it’s very difficult for him right now. Scoring goals is not enough in this type of club. I’m going to play devil’s advocate: we always say that it takes time for a player to adapt to a new team, but, unfortunately, when you wear this shirt they don’t give you much time,” he warned.

I’m going to play devil’s advocate: we always say that it takes time for a player to adapt to a new team, but, unfortunately, when you wear this shirt they don’t give you much time

Thierry Henry

While adjusting the landing, also physical, Mbappé continues the lawsuits with PSG, from whom he demands 55 million in bonuses and salaries. This Friday, the Joint Resources Commission of the French League agreed with him, although the entity can still appeal. A reinforcement, in any case, in some complex times for him personally after learning that it could be related to a complaint of sexual assault in a hotel in Stockholm where he spent the night two weeks ago. The media noise has subsided, but the cloud has not disappeared.

Barcelona is the non-French rival that has scored the most goals (six in four Champions League games) and, on this occasion, the Barça’s very advanced defense can open a window for him to run into space, the great specialty of this boy raised in the leagues of Bondy, one of the 40 communes of the department 93 of Paris, a suburb converted into a factory of physical footballers. Ancelotti has respected Vinicius’ left due to the status he has acquired, so he has been left with a more centered position (see heat maps below). When there have been two attackers he has been seen to be somewhat more comfortable than with three, as he has more air, and Rodrygo’s loss pushes Carletto towards this configuration in the classic.

The center forward position, which he has occupied in a three-man formation, has never been his favorite. And he made it clear. In October 2022, Christophe Galtier placed him as a striker in a draw with Reims and he replied ironically on his networks: “#pivotgang”, a comment that the entire country interpreted as a protest. Two months before, he had already argued this with the national team: “With France they ask me for different things than at PSG and I have much more freedom. There is Giroud as a nine who sets the defenses and I can go into space. In Paris they ask me to play center and it is different,” he warned. In Madrid, for the moment, with a low profile different from that of the Parque de los Príncipes, he has accepted what he has been given without public complaint. “Now I arrive and I have to adapt to the team,” he insisted in the presentation.

His most basic statistics barely change compared to the last season in shots (five every 90 minutes), attempted dribbles (5.7 compared to 5.9 last season); and pressures (31.8-30.7). However, some differences with Vini are noticeable: the Brazilian has scored the same (eight) shooting almost half of them on goal (15-27) and presses many more times (46.2). The roar of the classic awaits Kiki.