“It makes you sad, but you can’t forget it” - Kylian Mbappe makes feelings clear about losing 2022 World Cup final to Lionel Messi-led Argentina

Real Madrid and France superstar Kylian Mbappe has opened up on the feeling of losing the 2022 FIFA World Cup final to Lionel Messi's Argentina. The forward was part of the French side that got outclassed in the final in Doha three years ago, with La Albiceleste claiming the win after a penalty shootout.

Kylian Mbappe sat down with Movistar Futbol for a chat from the French national team camp, touching on a number of different topics. He spoke about that tournament, revealing that the memories still linger and will likely fuel him and his teammates to do better in the next edition.

“World Cup final? Argentina deserved to win, they were better throughout the whole match. You don’t think about scoring in a final, but about winning it. It was a crazy match that Argentina deserved to win, they were better throughout the whole game. We had a moment when we were the better team, but if you look at the whole match, their victory was deserved. It makes you sad, but you can’t forget it, because 2026 is coming and we don’t want to end up sad again", he said (via @AlbicelesteTalk on X).

Kylian Mbappe admitted that Argentina were the superior side for most of the game and deserved to win what has been billed as one of the most entertaining World Cup finals ever. The 26-year-old scored a hat-trick in the game, helping his side come from 2-0 down to draw 3-3 after two hours of football.

Lionel Messi netted twice for Argentina on the game before converting a penalty in the shootout. The victory saw Messi pick up the one piece of silverware that eluded him the most in his career, and he 'completed football' afterwards.

Kylian Mbappe praises Lionel Messi for attitude during time together

France captain Kylian Mbappe has praised former teammate Lionel Messi for his laid-back attitude after their spell together. The Real Madrid star is one of the world's biggest stars, and has earned the rights to be addressed as such.

Mbappe spoke with Universo Valdano, revealing that Lionel Messi's humility was surprising to him and several other teammates at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). He pointed out that playing alongside the 38-year-old helped him understand football better, and he trusted Messi to create for him.

“It’s completely normal. When you're famous, you tend to be pigeonholed as you are, and if you don't listen, it sticks in your head. We say to ourselves: “Well, yes, it’s true, he’s like that." But no. Messi arrived and was a completely normal person, respectful of everyone. And as a player, he's… (sighs) a unique player. When you have someone like that in your team and you are a striker, you have to be present and observe everything he does. His finishing, his saves, his play. And I think being so close to him helped me a lot to understand the game better", he said (via French Football Weekly).

Lionel Messi was teammates with Kylian Mbappe for two years between 2021 and 2023 at PSG, with the pair winning the Ligue 1 title in both seasons. Both players ended up leaving the French giants for free within one year of each other to join Inter Miami and Real Madrid, respectively.

Edited by Sulayman Salahudeen