Comparing Kylian Mbappe’s career stats after 500 games with Messi and Ronaldo

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are perhaps the two best players to ever play the game, and they certainly top the list in the modern era of football.

Kylian Mbappe has long been seen as the heir to their throne, having burst on the scene as a teenager and continued starring consistently across each level of football.

Now with 500 games under his belt, we have looked at how the Frenchman's stats compare with the two icons of the game at the same time in their careers.

In terms of minutes played, the numbers are all quite similar – Mbappe reached 500 games having played 38,409 minutes, with Messi ahead on 39,181, and Ronaldo slightly behind on 37,880.

Mbappe has been in the most potent attacks of any of the trio to this point – at Monaco, Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid and with France – with his team goals tally sitting at 1074, just ahead of Messi's on 1070, and way clear of Ronaldo, down at 846.

Mbappe also clears Ronaldo quite comfortably on goals scored by the player themselves. The Frenchman's tally is 362, while Ronaldo was on 243, and Messi again topped the metric, with 386. If Mbappe's goalscoring form continues at his current rate, he'll be one of the best goalscorers in the history of the game when he retires.

The Frenchman is also just as adept at assisting so far, with his 145 assists only just beaten by Messi's 153, while Ronaldo was again behind, at 99 after 500 games.

Overall set piece goals have not been Mbappe's friend to this point in his career. He has famously never scored from a free-kick, though he does have 46 penalty goals to his name.

By the same point, Ronaldo had scored 27 free-kicks and 34 penalties, and Messi had bagged 15 free-kick goals, along with a round 50 penalties.

If Mbappe was to add free-kick goals to his game, he'd become a more well-rounded player. Headed goals are also not a huge part of his game – he has just 12, with 5ft5in Messi two ahead on 14, while Ronaldo, with his athletic frame, was on 38 by the time he had played 500 games.

Mbappe has clearly been the linchpin of each side he has played for, with his goals and assists per-90 tally at 1.336, which is just below Messi's at 1.351, but ahead of Ronaldo's 0.917 figure.

Ronaldo made up for his comparatively slower start in the middle part of his career, and continues to impress late on, so Mbappe will need to do the same if he's to cement his status as one of the best forwards to play the game.

Here's the full breakdown of how their records compare with one another after 500 games:

Kylian Mbappe

Games: 500

Goals: 362

Assists: 145

Team goals: 1074 ⭐

Free-kick goals: 0

Penalty goals: 46

Headed goals: 12

Goals and assists per-90: 1.336

Lionel Messi

Games: 500

Goals: 386 ⭐

Assists: 153 ⭐

Team goals: 1070

Free-kick goals: 15

Penalty goals: 50 ⭐

Headed goals: 14

Goals and assists per-90: 1.351 ⭐

Cristiano Ronaldo

Games: 500

Goals: 243

Assists: 99

Team goals: 846

Free-kick goals: 27 ⭐

Penalty goals: 34

Headed goals: 38 ⭐

Goals and assists per-90: 0.917

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