Deschamps on Italy “would be terrible”
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Top striker Kylian Mbappé is chasing Miroslav Klose’s goal record at the World Cup, but clearly puts him behind the goal of a second title with France. “Immediately. I would sign immediately. If that means we win, I will be happy to be the first to celebrate on the Champs-Élysées,” said the captain of the Équipe Tricolore in an interview with the “M6” channel.
The 27-year-old is traveling to his third World Cup finals with twelve goals. After winning the title in 2018 and losing the final in 2022, Mbappé is only four goals short of the record set by Klose, who scored his 16 goals in four tournaments for Germany. “Of course I want to continue making history. But what I want most of all is to return to France with the trophy,” said the Real Madrid goalscorer.
Klose emphasized in an interview with “Sport Bild” in January: “I’m sure that my World Cup goal record will be broken soon. Either Lionel Messi will do it this summer or at the latest Kylian Mbappé will do it at the next World Cup.” One factor for Klose: In contrast to him, the Argentine Messi, who has 13 goals in 26 World Cup games, and Mbappé would also take penalties. Klose (16) is currently number one on the leaderboard ahead of the Brazilian Ronaldo (15). Third is Gerd Müller with 14 goals, followed by Messi (13) and Just Fontaine, who only played at the 1958 World Cup but scored an incredible 13 goals in six games. Mbappé is tied for sixth place (see full statistics).
Mbappé on Deschamps’ future: Italy “would be terrible”
France’s mission to win their third World Cup title begins on Tuesday against Senegal. Other opponents in the preliminary round are Iraq and Norway. The duel with Germany could take place in a possible round of 16. Les Bleus’ hopes once again rest on Mbappé, who should form the storm together with world footballer Ousmane Dembélé and Ballon d’Or candidate Michael Olise.
In addition to the star striker, the focus is also on Didier Deschamps. The 2018 world champion coach will leave his post after the tournament after 14 years. “The best way to pay tribute to him is to win the World Cup because he loves winning,” Mbappé said. He added with a laugh: “I hope he doesn’t play again with another team. I’m putting pressure on him. I saw that there was talk about Italy, that would be terrible.”