"MBAPPE IS BETTER THAN HAALAND"

 

    Football has witnessed a number of top-notch players in every era. players who have elevated the game we love into new and astronomical heights. These great players sometimes are pitted against other players of similar skills and attribute which turns into incredible rivalries. Football has seen lots of mind-blowing rivalries, from the Roy Keane-  Patrick Viera showdown to the Steven Gerrard- Frank Lampard rivalry and the one that kept us glued to our seats for more than a decade Messi- Ronaldo.

    Those were all great rivalries to watch but the newest and most exciting rivalry is none other than " MBAPPE vs HAALAND". These two youngsters burst into the scene s couple of years ago and have completely taken the football world by storm. Some pundits have even gone far as to announce those two as the future faces of the sport and future Ballon d'Or winners but how exactly do these two stack up against each other?

    Following Erling Haaland's move to one of the biggest clubs in England (Manchester City) and Kylian Mbappe's decision to sign a new deal with one of the richest clubs in the world (PSG), we now know where the two candidates for the best player in the world throne will ply their trade next season.

    Haaland's move will see him link up with the Premier League winners-elect, giving Pep Guardiola even greater ammunition in his bid to finally land the Champions League the trophy that has eluded him since joining the Manchester side.

    However, lifting Europe's biggest prize will be a lot easier said than done, considering PSG will once again have one of the world's best at their disposal.

Marysays would be determining who's better using a few parameters...

Mbappe or Haaland: Who had the biggest first impression?

Erling Haaland, FK Molde

    Norway striker Haaland was born in Leeds but began his career back in his parents' hometown of Bryne in Norway. After 18 goals in 14 games for Byrne's reserve side, Haaland got his chance to play for the first team and made his debut three months before his 16th birthday.

Although he failed to score in 16 matches, Haaland impressed enough with his performances to earn a move to fellow Norwegian outfit Molde. His impact on Molde was crazy, scoring on his debut. In his first year as a professional footballer, Haaland scored four goals in 36 appearances.

    Mbappe grew up in Paris and as a kid played for AS Bondy before being part of the Clairefontaine academy, where he caught the interest of the world's biggest clubs.

A young Kylian Mbappe in action for AS Monaco in Ligue 1 where many people first saw signs of his genius.
He opted to sign for AS Monaco and was due to be used in their B team, but after only three weeks he was fast-tracked to their first-team squad.

Mbappe had his debut before his 17th birthday, a year after Haaland. It made him Monaco's youngest-ever player, beating the record set by Thierry Henry.

His first goal for the club also made him the youngest scorer in the club's history, displacing Henry again. In his first season, Mbappe played 14 times, netting once.

So who do you think won this round?..

Mbappe or Haaland: Scoring stats

    This section will focus on numbers, with the most important coming in the goalscoring. It should be noted that Mbappe is older than Haaland(19 months to be precise).

    Kylian Mbappe has played 335 games for club and country (as of May 20, 2022), scoring 226 goals. He averages a goal scored every 1.48 matches.

    Haaland has played considerably fewer matches, with 200 appearances and 150 goals, which equates to one every 1.33 matches.

    There is no difference in the number of penalties each player has converted either, with Mbappe having scored on 20 occasions from 12 yards and Haaland matching him.

    In the previous season, Haaland suffered a couple of injuries but played 30 times for Dortmund, scoring 29 times.

Frenchman Mbappe played 45 times for PSG in 2021/22, netting 36 times.

Who do you think won this round

Mbappe or Erling Haaland: Team accomplishment and team play

    Mbappe has been much more clinical in securing silverware, winning mind-boggling 15 senior trophies, including five Ligue 1 titles. For France, Mbappe has won the Nations League and the 2018 World Cup, scoring in both finals.

    Haaland, in contrast, has only won four pieces of silverware. These being the DFB Pokal with former club Borussia Dortmund in 2021 and three titles at former club Red Bull Salzburg (two Austrian Bundesliga and one Austrian Cup).

    When looking at their team play at the club level, Mbappe leads the way in terms of assists, with 105 to Haaland's 36 although he has played fewer games.

    Mbappe is not an out-and-out striker and is considered a modern-day forward player, given his ability to play in any attacking position. 

    Haaland, in contrast, is an out and out no. 9. A classic striker capable of linking play, he is expected to be a finisher in the 18-yard box, which takes the burden off him in terms of assists.

Who do you think won this round?

Mbappe or Haaland: Marketability

    We may not like to admit it but football is all about marketability. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for the last 15 years or so have been the kings in popularity and marketability. But who will take the crown going forward?

    Mbappe has already hit the heights, having major sponsorship deals. The Freshman has 71 million followers on Instagram, compared to the 15.7 million that Haaland possesses.

Haaland's sponsorship deal with Nike ended early in 2022. Despite rumors linking him with fellow sports brand Puma, who was willing to pay him almost £ 7 million a year, he opted for Adidas. The Haaland camp was reportedly asking for £42million over five years but the details of the deal have not been confirmed.

Who do you think won this round?

Mbappe or Haaland: FIFA ratings

    We can't compare the two without talking about their FIFA ratings, which also gives us an opportunity to measure them against Ronaldo and Messi and also just for the fun of it.

In FIFA 22, Ronaldo has a rating of 91, with PSG's Messi rated 93 - the highest rated player in the game. Messi's clubmate Mbappe is rated 91,  foreshadowing the imminent eclipsing of the former by the latter.

Haaland secured a rating of 88 this year, which is extremely impressive considering he is only 21.

    Delving deeper into the stats, Mbappe is superior to Haaland when it comes to pace (97-89), marking him out as the fastest player in the game ahead of Adama Traore (96).

The Norwegian striker comes out on top when it comes to shooting (91-88) and has the edge in defending (45-36).

Mbappe is 15 clear when it comes to passing and also has superior dribbling ability with this stat in the nineties (92).

Given that Haaland is 6ft 4in (1.94m), it is little surprise to see him dominate the physical stat, with his 88 outstripping the 77 on Mbappe's base card.

So who do you think is better?

Both are great but the major question is who will be at the top in the coming years and who will flip. Who's more likely to flop, my personal opinion being Haaland...

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