“There wasn’t that much difference to the feeling I had” - Ex-Real Madrid star compares training with Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe
Former Real Madrid forward Jese Rodriguez opened on playing alongside two superstars of the game in Kylian Mbappe and Cristiano Ronaldo. He said the Frenchman trained as hard as his idol, with the duo always determined to score goals even in practice.
Speaking to ElDesmarque, Jese stated that it was clear from the start that Mbappe was going to deliver on the big stage. He believes that the Frenchman's talent is different from Ronaldo, but their training routine are similar. He said:
“There wasn’t that much difference to the feeling I had when I was training with Cristiano [Ronaldo]. They were both the same, they scored goals in every training session. They both have their different talents, but you could already see that Mbappe was going to be a star.”
Jese admitted that Mbappe spoke to him about Real Madrid while they were at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and said:
“I had a couple of conversations with him before I left, he asked me what Real Madrid was like as a club and I told him it was the best club in the world and that if he wanted to win the Ballon d’Or he should sign for Madrid."
Jese played 75 matches with Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid. He moved to PSG but never played a match with Kylian Mbappe.
Cristiano Ronaldo heaped praise on Real Madrid star Kylian Mbappe
Cristiano Ronaldo spoke about Kylian Mbappe's move to Real Madrid earlier this year and believed the Frenchman would do well. He added that the former PSG star was bound to win the Ballon d'Or in the near future with competition from Erling Haaland, Lamine Yamal and Jude Bellingham.
He said on his YouTube channel:
"I think he will do well because of the structure of the club ... it's nice, it's good, it's solid. They have a great coach and the president who has been there for many many years. I think it won't be a big problem because of his talent. He has shown what he is capable of doing. In my opinion, he can be the next Golden Ball [Ballon d'Or] winner. Him, [Erling] Haaland, [Jude] Bellingham, Lamine [Yamal]. I think this new generation, they have a lot of potential."
Cristiano Ronaldo was linked with PSG to join forces with Kylian Mbappe after his second Manchester United spell, but the move never materialized.