Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo might just be the world’s two best players right now.
Messi is continuing to do things that defy belief, his hat-trick in Barcelona’s 4-1 win against Real Betis on Sunday just a thing of beauty.
Then there’s Ronaldo, who proved he’s still the man for the big moments with a hat-trick in Juventus’ comeback win against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.
The pair’s duopoly was broken last year when Luka Modric won the Ballon d’Or award but they remain at the top of their game.
Indeed, we could be set for a Messi v Ronaldo meeting in the Champions League final this season.
The likes of Neymar and Antoine Griezmann have tried to replace them at the top but have been unable to do so.
But in Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, there’s a player who many believe will scoop the accolades once Messi and Ronaldo are out of the scene.
Mbappe, who joined PSG for £160 million in 2017, is just 20 years old but he’s already won back-to-back Ligue 1 titles and the World Cup with France.
He’s on his way to greatness – and Jose Mourinho believes he’s the most valuable player in the world right now.
Mourinho raved about Mbappe during an appearance on beIN SPORTS and believes that when age is considered as well as talent, the young striker would attract the highest transfer fee in the world.
“For a player like Mbappe, when you speak about the future, you don’t need to say what he’s going to be like in five years’ time, in 10 years’ time,” Mourinho said. “I think going by his age and [and considering] the age of Cristiano, of Messi, [both] over 30, Neymar is 27… when you go to the market level and age is also a factor, I think he’s the most valuable player in the world.
“In a hypothetical transfer, he’s the most expensive player in football now.
“In terms of his qualities, [he is] unbelievable. One word is enough. It means everything.”
A study by CIES Football Observatory in January also found Mbappe to be the most valuable player in the world.
His price tag was €218.5m, with Harry Kane worth €200.3m and Neymar €197.1m.