Kylian Mbappe has been told that he is still “missing something” in his bid to land an elusive Ballon d’Or. The France international was expected to dominate Golden Ball discussions as all-time greats Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo step out of that spotlight, but he has been informed by a fellow World Cup winner that being a ‘Galactico’ at Real Madrid may not be enough.
Mbappe swapped PSG for Real Madrid as a free agent
Mbappe agreed a move to Santiago Bernabeu in 2024 that had been mooted for some time. He severed ties with Paris Saint-Germain as a free agent after reaching the end of his contract. He left the French capital as PSG’s all-time leading goalscorer and embraced a fresh start in the heart of Spain.
His debut campaign with the Blancos delivered 44 goals, alongside UEFA Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup honours, but the biggest of domestic and European prizes eluded him. That led to more frustration being endured in the Ballon d’Or vote, with former PSG team-mate and international colleague Ousmane Dembele going on to be named the best player on the planet in 2025.
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Mbappe could only muster a seventh-place finish. Claiming third spot behind Messi and Erling Haaland in 2023 – on the back of enduring World Cup final heartache with France at Qatar 2022 – remains his highest ranking to date. Others, such as Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal, are threatening to rise above Mbappe when it comes to future awards.
Marcel Desailly, who helped France to global glory in 1998, admits that Mbappe cannot expect to land the most prestigious of individual accolades until his wait for Champions League glory has come to a close and Real Madrid reassert their dominance in Spain.
Can Mbappe win a Golden Ball? Desailly delivers his verdict
Speaking in association with , Desailly told GOAL when asked for his assessment of an iconic countryman: “Mbappe. Wow, he made the move that eventually allowed him to be that Ballon d'Or that he himself is looking for. And he had great years in Paris Saint-Germain. Unfortunately, it was a Paris Saint-Germain with all these stars allying and they've not been able really to score. But Mbappe, when he was 24/25 in Paris, was just amazing.
“I feel that he was, the agility, the speed and all what he was showing back in the days was much more accurate than what he's showing now. Even though this year he has performed, I don't know his statistics, but he has scored more than 40 goals, he left Paris with 40-odd goals and he came back in Madrid and did the same thing, he scored similar stats.
“So it's just unfortunate that Madrid has dropped. The cycle of Madrid has dropped a little bit. It's not the end of a cycle. It's dropped in the cycle with a new coach, a new philosophy now, because [Carlo] Ancelotti, he didn't find a way to make the team to be sparkling again, you know. You could see that tactically something was missing in the squad. They were still winning by luck.
“Because the gods of football love Madrid they've been able to find some good opportunities to win some games, but it's not enough. It's not enough for the Champions League and for their Spanish league. But now they are back into kind of stability, but you are not sure because lots of injured players…
“So I believe that he's that key player. The problem he has is the association. The association with the other players. You see? So the association with Vinicius is not that great. They have these new players in the midfield. Xabi [Alonso] is giving him the opportunity to become that important offensive player. So I don't know, it depends on the others also to have that extra. The statistics are magnificent, but he's missing something that will push him to become a Ballon d'Or.”
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Mbappe has registered 15 goals for Real this season through 12 appearances in all competitions. He is also just four efforts away from tying with Olivier Giroud as the greatest marksman that France’s national team has ever seen – while being seven appearances short of a century for Les Bleus.
He is in the midst of another Champions League campaign, with the 2026 World Cup to come next summer, and has helped Madrid make an impressive start to their latest La Liga title bid. A Clasico clash with arch-rivals Barcelona is next on the agenda for Alonso’s side.