Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti believes Kylian Mbappe can reach the level of Cristiano Ronaldo after he netted a hat-trick in the 3-1 win over Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League knockout playoff second leg on Wednesday, Afrosport reports.
The Frenchman scored all three goals in the first half to ultimately hand Los Blancos a 6-3 aggregate victory and a place in the round of 16.
It took Mbappe’s tally to 27 competitive goals in 37 games but Ancelotti asserted he will need to work hard to reach Ronaldo’s level.
The Portuguese maestro is Madrid’s all time top scorer with 450 competitive goals in 438 games
“He has the quality to reach Cristiano’s level, but he needs to work hard because Cristiano set the bar very high,” the Italian said.
“[Mbappe] has just started with our club, and I think that his quality and his enthusiasm for being with this club can help him reach Cristiano’s level, but it won’t be easy for him. He needs to work for that.”
14 – Players of top five European leagues with most goals in all competitions in calendar year 2025:
15 – Ousmane Dembélé
14 – KYLIAN MBAPPÉ
9 – Mateo Retegui
9 – Harry Kane
9 – Robert Lewandowski
9 – Mo SalahAnimals.
pic.twitter.com/wZlLpt67yF
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) February 20, 2025
Meanwhile, Mbappe stated he wants to score more than 50 goals in his first season at the Santiago Bernabeu but above all, wants to win the Champions League, the biggest title that has eluded him in his career.
“Yes, I want to. Always. I couldn’t trust myself more and I have no limits. Scoring 50 would be good, but I’ll try to score more, sure,” he said.
“Sure sure, but I’m here to win titles. I have been the top scorer before, I was the UCL top scorer last year, but did I win it? No, I didn’t. I don’t care about being the top scorer, the most important thing for me is winning titles.”
Real Madrid will next take on Girona at the Bernabeu in La Liga on Sunday.
