There was heartbreak for a reported Liverpool target in the World Cup tonight – Kylian Mbappe.
Despite scoring three goals in a World Cup final, the 23-year-old France attacker was on the losing side.
Les Bleus were beaten by Argentina in a pulsating showpiece in Qatar, with the Liverpool-linked sensation scoring a treble over the course of two hours – and, of course, another in the shootout.
Lionel Messi finally getting his hands on this trophy will undeniably be the main story of this edition of the competition.
But leaving that aside, Mbappe enhanced his reputation as possibly the best player in football in spite of the defeat.
Back in October, Marca reported that Liverpool were keen on signing the former Monaco wonderkid, amid speculation of him leaving PSG.
Rumours about his future will take a backseat for now, but Alan Shearer has paid a glowing tribute to him – and of course Messi – on BBC Sport.
He said: “It was a pleasure to be here yo see it. Thank you to Messi and Mbappe. The way Argentina kept going, the mentality they had to score in terms of the belief. Well done and thank you for entertaining us. It was just unbelievable.”
As mentioned, for now it’s all about Messi.
But when the dust settles, the focus might shift to what a frightening footballer Mbappe really is – and at 23, he’s only going to get substantially better from here on in.
Whether the Liverpool speculation amounts to anything remains to be seen, but one thing for sure is that he’ll cost an absolute fortune.
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