- Kylian Mbappe faced stern criticism for his performances earlier this season
- Cristiano Ronaldo has issued advice to his former club to get the best of the ace
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Cristiano Ronaldo has warned Real Madrid that Kylian Mbappe ‘doesn’t know’ how to play as a No 9 and urged the club to help him improve there.
Mbappe has scored 22 goals in all competitions in his first season at the club but faced stern criticism for his underwhelming performances earlier in the campaign.
The superstar followed in the footsteps of his idol Ronaldo after joining on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain and has made no secret of his desire to emulate him, going as far as to claim it was his ‘destiny’ to make the move to the Bernabeu.
Ronaldo, Madrid’s all-time top scorer with 451 goals, was Mbappe’s childhood hero and infamously posed for a photo with him while he was a youngster.
He is confident there is more to come from the ace and, offering invaluable career advice, he urged him to avoid restricting himself to simply being a striker.
Speaking in an interview with Spanish TV show El Chringuito, Ronaldo said: ‘It’s complicated, because he doesn’t know how to play as a forward in my opinion – or rather, it’s not that he doesn’t know, but it isn’t his position.
Cristiano Ronaldo has issued Real Madrid a warning over Kylian Mbappe
Ronaldo believes Mbappe doesn’t know how to play as a No 9 and must be trained there
Carlo Ancelotti issued his full backing to the ace, labelling him the world’s best centre forward
‘If I was at Madrid, I’d show him how to play as a number nine.
‘I wasn’t a forward. I got used to it, but I was a winger. People forget that. I was a forward, but not a typical forward.
‘I think [Mbappe] shouldn’t be a typical forward, he should do things his way.’
Mbappe initially took time to find his feet as the focal point of Madrid’s frontline, having been afforded freedom during his glittering six-year stay at PSG.
But Carlo Ancelotti has looked to boost his confidence and handed him his full backing, even describing him as ‘the best centre forward in the world’ this month.
‘Look after the lad,’ Ronaldo added. ‘The fans need to look after him. He’s very good.
‘The club have to help to protect him.
‘I have no doubt he’ll bring a lot of joy to Madrid fans. I love him, not just because of his story as a kid, how he loved Cristiano, I was his idol. I think he’s a top player.’
Now on the books at Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo admitted he watches Mbappe ‘from time to time’ being his son Mateo ‘likes Mbappe a lot’.
Mbappe has already won two trophies at Madrid, having lifted the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup earlier this season. He missed out on a third piece of silverware after the club’s 5-2 defeat by Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup.
