Raphael Varane hopes Kylian Mbappe will join him at Real Madrid this summer

Raphael Varane has underlined his ambition to play alongside Kylian Mbappe at Real Madrid during a complimentary interview answer about his France international team-mate.

Mbappe has been on fire this season once again, with two more goals on Sunday in the 4-2 win over Lyon taking his tally in all competitions to 30 goals in 36 games for Paris Saint-Germain during the current campaign as the capital club returned to the top of Ligue 1.

The 22-year-old's performances this term, including a stunning hat-trick against Barcelona at the Nou Camp, have prompted strong speculation about a summer move to the Bernabeu, with Varane doing little to quell the rumours when he spoke to French publication Europe 1.

On the prospect of playing alongside his compatriot in Spain, the centre back said: 'He's still young but he has made huge progress and he keeps developing.

'He's becoming an all-around player and he's still a goalscorer, he's one of the best.

'My goal is to play alongside the best players and Kylian is one of the best players in European football.'

Mbappe's current contract at the Parc des Princes runs out in the summer of 2022, with former PSG winger Jerome Rothen claiming last April that Los Blancos - who currently sit third in LaLiga - almost signed the former Monaco forward before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Both Real and PSG are in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, with the Spaniards facing Liverpool in a repeat of the 2018 final, while PSG face off against Bayern Munich in a rerun of last year's showpiece that was won by a solitary goal from Kingsley Coman.

Varane and Mbappe have been called up to the France squad for the upcoming 2022 World Cup qualifiers against Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Bosnia and Herzegovina.