The Boy With The World At His Feet

Winning the World Cup at 19 looks to be just the beginning for the young French superstar

- Howard Johnson

If you’re looking for the game’s current greatest overachiever, then look no further than Rafael Varane. Part of the France side that beat Croatia in Moscow in July, the 25-year-old added a World Cup-winner’s medal to an unbelievable haul of four Champions League gongs.

Yet despite Varane’s phenomenal success, he is nowhere near as feted or famous as his French team-mate Kylian Mbappe who, at the age of just 19, is undoubtedly the hottest property in world football today.

Mbappe may not have picked up as much silverware as Varane but no one can doubt that he has already won more hearts.

Having made his senior international debut barely 18 months ago, the Paris-born striker is already the player every youngster dreams of being and every coach would love to sign.

His goal in the World Cup Final – a smart, right-foot drive beyond Croatia keeper and former Monaco team-mate Danijel Subasic – showed the world everything about Mbappe’s qualities. Receiving a pass from Lucas Hernandez 25 yards from goal, he took the ball side on and then swivelled quickly, shifting the ball wider to create space away from defender Domagoj Vida before rifling a shot low into the left-hand corner of the net. Everything was done neatly, tidily and brilliantly, with minimum fuss and maximum efficiency.

Given the amount of talent at French boss Didier Deschamp’s disposal, the fact that Mbappe started all seven World Cup games, scoring four goals, shows the esteem in which the coach – who has now won the World Cup both as a player and as a boss – holds the Paris Saint- Germain forward.