Real Madrid legend Casemiro has backed Kylian Mbappe to become a '40-goal-per-season' striker and succeed with Los Blancos and make history.
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Casemiro backs Kylian Mbappe to succeed at Madrid Claims he can create history and score 40 per seasonCalls Mbappe, the heir to Ronaldo, Messi and NeymarFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Mbappe joined Real Madrid in the summer as a free agent after the Frenchman saw his contract run out at Paris Saint-Germain. After a difficult start to life with Los Blancos, Mbappe has slowly found his feet and has scored 23 goals so far this season, the club's top scorer.
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Casemiro, who currently playing with Manchester United following his departure from Real Madrid in 2022, has now backed Mbappe to hit the levels expected from him. The Brazilian said that the Frenchman can get 40 goals per season and make history for Los Blancos despite his difficult start to life. He also labelled Mbappe as the heir to Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi and Neymar.
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In an interview with AS, Casemiro said: "It has been difficult for Mbappe? Yes, but he is already established and will give you 40 goals a year. The youngsters, like Rodrygo, Militao or Fede, who I admire a lot for the way they play and give their all, know how to wait for their moment. And it always ends up coming. The adaptation of the youngsters is easier with the veterans explaining to them what everything is like here."
When asked if Mbappe was at the level of Ronaldo and Messi, Casemiro added: "I'll tell you one thing. Mbappe is an unstoppable player. My first encounter with him was in the Champions League in Paris, at the Parc des Princes. He did everything to us. We lost 1-0 with a goal from him, but it was crazy. He's the kind of player who will go down in football history. We can't ask him to always score a 9. But he never goes below 7.5 or 8. He's spoiled us.
Mbappé can make history at Madrid. Of course. On top of that, the lad has a humility that must be appreciated. He is playing in a position that is not his. He is doing well because he is very good. But, well, on the left is Vini. It is not easy to remove him from there (he smiles). This is football. It is not his position and without being a number 9 he is doing well. Credit to Ancelotti, who has convinced him to perform there. He knows that Kylian can also be a great centre forward."
WHAT NEXT FOR MBAPPE?
Real Madrid and Mbappe are set to take on Casemiro's United's city rivals Manchester City up next in the second leg of the Champions League playoffs and Casemiro has revealed that he will be backing his former side on the night.
He added: "Even if it hadn't been against City, I'll always want Madrid to win. Unless we meet one day, of course…"