Kylian Mbappe poses with Santos shirt after Pele sends record-breaker personal gift

Paris Saint-Germain wonderkid Kylian Mbappe was delighted to receive a signed Santos football strip sent to him by Brazilian football icon Pele. 

The Frenchman posted the picture online via his official Twitter account showing him holding aloft the famous Brazilian club’s shirt.

The tweet included a message that simply read: “Thanks for this amazing gift, King @Pele”

Thanks for this amazing gift, King @Pele pic.twitter.com/W1sNkXRbym

— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe) September 23, 2018

Mbappe was sent the shirt after replicating the fetes of Pele this summer at the Fifa World Cup in Russia, where France won their first World Cup trophy in 20 years.

The talented striker became the first teenager to score more than once in a World Cup match since Pele netted twice for Brazil in their final win against Sweden in 1958.

The 19-year-old scored four goals in total – including a fine goal in France’s 4-2 final win over fellow European side Croatia – en route to World Cup success, ultimately earning him the honour of being named the ‘Best Young Player’ in the competition.

Is Mbappe the next Pele?

Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger stated back in July that he believes Mbappe could follow in the footsteps of the one and only Pele.

At the time he said: “He could become the next Pele. He has no limits. He’s 18 and will only get stronger.”

His goal in the World Cup final ensured that Mbappe is the only other teenager – alongside Pele’s double back in 1958 – to have scored in the fixture.

By the age of 19, Pele had already established himself as one of the greatest strikers around, winning the World Cup at the age of 17, and then two Paulistas and a Sao Paulo tournament before entering his twenties.

Mbappe – also 19 – has already got a World Cup to his name alongside two consecutive Ligue 1 titles (one with AS Monaco, the other with PSG), one Coupe de France and one Coupe de la Ligue triumph.

The only real difference between the two players at present is the consistency of goals scored in competitive football. The Frenchman has nine goals in 24 outings for his country in comparison to Pele’s 77 goals in 92 appearances.

According to the records held by IFFHS, Pelé is the highest league goalscorer in world football to date, scoring a seemingly unbeatable 1,281 goals in 1,363 games, including unofficial friendlies and tour games. This equates to a goal per game average as 0.94, almost a goal every single game of his domestic career.

His career with both Monaco and now PSG has seen Mbappe score 53 goals in 108 games, averaging 049 goals per game.

The post Kylian Mbappe poses with Santos shirt after Pele sends record-breaker personal gift appeared first on Squawka News.

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