Real Madrid number 10 Kylian Mbappe sent the football world a warning on how to treat FC Barcelona counterpart Lamine Yamal during an interview with Jorge Valdano shown by Spanish television channel Movistar.
Mbappe has been in Lamineâs shoes before as the worldâs most talked up young talent, and while they are rivals both at international and club level, set to face off once more in El Clasico on October 26, Mbappe seems to be looking out for the Ballon dâOr runner-up that has faced scrutiny about his off-field life.
âI think you can see that he has a passion for football, and itâs the only thing he shouldnât lose – the passion for football,â Mbappe told Valdano.
“The rest is his life and people talk a lot about his personal life, his things. I think people have to leave him alone. They have to accept that in football he is a great player, but in life he is an 18-year-old boy. And at 18 years old everyone makes mistakes, there are things they do well, [and things] they do badly.
“In the end he will have his life experience, he will know what is good for him, [and] what is bad. In the end we only have to look at what he does on the pitch, the rest is not important if it is not serious,” Mbappe added, ahead of wishing Lamine âthe best of luckâ in conclusion.
Mbappe touched on his relationship with Real Madrid teammate Vinicius Jr.
Furthermore in the interview, Mbappe touched on his perhaps misunderstood relationship with club teammate Vinicius Jr.
âTwo famous players in the same team, that sells a lot of papers,â Mbappe quipped. “The truth is that I have a very good relationship with Vinicius, much better this year, [because] we got to know each other better.
âHe is a great player and a very good person. Itâs normal, we know that people are going to talk about us but in the end we have the same objective at Madrid: to win titles.â
Following the international break, Real Madrid will return to La Liga action with a trip to Getafe on October 19 before hosting FC Barcelona in El Clasico the following Sunday.