On September 19, at 2 p.m. (CEST), France Football published an extensive article about Mbappé, detailing his growth from childhood through becoming a professional player and eventually one of the most talked-about stars in football today, as well as the factors that shaped him.

Original Article

From an early age, Mbappé showed potential to become a football legend. What carefully planned steps did the nine-time Ballon d'Or nominee take on his journey to the top? And once there, how did he maintain his focus and control the narrative?

42 goals for club, combined with a record-breaking World Cup performance, secured his ninth consecutive Ballon d'Or nomination for 2026.

Highly Anticipated

People had high expectations for Mbappé from a young age, and he certainly delivered with brilliant results.

This summer, the forward became the first player in half a century to score double digits at the World Cup, topping the all-time goal-scoring list for the French national team.

In club football, he was named Ligue 1 Player of the Year five times and won the league's Golden Boot six times. During his time at Real Madrid, he played 105 matches, scoring 89 goals, including 3 hat-tricks in the Champions League.

Since 2017, he has been in the top ten for Ballon d'Or nominations every year.

There is no doubt that this boy obsessed with football, who grew up in the suburbs north of Paris, lived up to the enormous talent everyone saw in him. That talent led Real Madrid to invite him to visit their training center at age 11, and Chelsea did the same three years later.

It is reported that when Arsène Wenger first saw Mbappé at the French National Football Center in Clairefontaine, he said four words to those around him: "Pelé reincarnated."

Shaping Himself

The young player's talent was so extraordinary that childhood friends and coaches felt he was destined for a professional football career. With such exceptional talent, how could he not succeed?

But football, and indeed life, is never that simple. Many highly anticipated young talents fall by the wayside or hit a ceiling in their development.

The Mbappé family realized early on that talent alone would not be enough for Kylian to succeed, which is highly commendable.

He needed strong self-confidence to withstand immense external pressure, while at the same time remaining humble to deal with the fame that lay ahead.

He was born with an intrinsic drive, but that drive needed proper guidance; a strong mental fortitude was also indispensable to overcome the inevitable setbacks on the path to stardom.

Essentially, he was deliberately shaping himself, preparing for the life that awaited him. Mbappé once spoke about this growth process: "My mother always told me that before I became a great player, I had to be a good person."

The Right Environment for Growth

The main factor in shaping a person's character is often also the factor least controllable by the individual.

In this regard, Mbappé was fortunate: his childhood environment provided him with the conditions to hone his budding football skills while developing the mentality of a top-level athlete.

His small apartment overlooked the field of AS Bondy, a suburban Paris club, where his father Wilfried was the coach. From the kitchen window, he could see the entire field.

Mbappé's football career began at Bondy, playing in the club's youth categories from an early age. Before that, he was always on the field, reluctant to leave.

As a child, he would arrive in time to watch the players train, silently listening to his father call out tactics from the sideline, absorbing everything.

He later recalled: "I learned everything there."

The Power of Role Models

The choice of idols is never arbitrary. Idols influence and inspire us, and consciously or unconsciously, we actively strive to learn their qualities.

Mbappé's childhood idols were Cristiano Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane, two football giants who influenced him in different ways.

There is a famous photo: six-year-old Mbappé sitting on his bed, surrounded by posters of Ronaldo on the walls. At that age, what naturally attracted him most was his idol's goal-scoring ability, which was remarkable, and his skill at dribbling past opponents.

But what also impressed the young boy about the Portuguese star was his dedication to self-improvement and his tireless inner motivation.

Years later, Bernardo Silva, Mbappé's teammate at Monaco (also a Ballon d'Or nominee), praised Mbappé's professionalism, describing it as almost an "obsession."

As for Zidane, an iconic figure in France who transcends sports, what attracted Mbappé was his unique personal style, especially his courage to take risks and express himself on the field.

At age 11, Mbappé went to a local barber and asked for a "Zidane haircut." The barber was quite confused because Zidane had very short hair, and the boy also had short hair at the time.

Mbappé actually wanted Zidane's baldness. He wanted to be bald like his idol.

Strong Mentality

Some describe Mbappé as an ambitious person. This trait has benefited him greatly, making him unwilling to compromise or stop, always seeking excellence.

It also helps him maintain a high level of focus. In 2017, while still young, he said: "I have had a career plan for as long as I can remember. I know what I want to do and where I want to go, and nothing can hold me back."

Some also say he has extreme self-confidence. Although this trait can have negative connotations in many contexts, when 83,000 spectators at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium are cheering for a brilliant performance, strong self-confidence is essential.

This confidence is both the foundation that keeps him grounded and the driving force that propels him to the top.

Mbappé once said he builds this indispensable self-identity through self-suggestion: "Every time I step on the field, I tell myself I'm the best... Because that way, you don't limit yourself."

It was the same when he trained at Bondy. He insisted that his father arrange for the strongest defender on the team to play against him. Some nights his father really didn't want to do it, but he still forced himself to make the request.

Through these repeated challenges, he built a strong inner self, allowing him to face all future challenges calmly.

Traduzido por IA.

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