Liverpool face Real Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday and two of the biggest players in world football will collide here.
Indeed, while Liverpool vs Real Madrid is a box office fixture on its own, this game is even more spicy due to the fact we’ll be seeing Mohamed Salah and Kylian Mbappe face off.
Salah and Mbappe are two of the biggest names in world football, but we’ve rarely ever seen these two share the same pitch.
Indeed, Salah has only played against Mbappe twice in his career, winning once and losing once during the Group Stages of the 2018/19 Champions League.
Inevitably, these two are going to be compared to one another ahead of this game, and speaking on TNT Sports, Peter Crouch has been given the unenviable task of choosing which player is better.
Mohamed Salah of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Aston Villa FC at Anfield on November 09, 2024 in Liverpool, En...
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
Peter Crouch picks between Mohamed Salah and Kylian Mbappe
Crouch shared his verdict on which player is better.
Crouch claimed that Mbappe is better than Salah, but he made the choice begrudgingly, claiming that he still absolutely loves Salah as a player.
Salah is a Ballon d’Or contender according to some after his bright start to this season.
“Salah or Mbappe?” Crouch was asked.
“Oh, it’s Mbappe, I think, maybe just because, it’s a tough one that because I love Salah, but it’s Mbappe for me,” Crouch said.
Salah stats compared to Mbappe
It’s interesting that Crouch has picked Mbappe over Salah here, because the stats this season suggest that Salah is the better player.
Mohamed Salah stats this season Kylian Mbappe stats this season
Games 13 12
Goals 10 7
Assists 6 1
League games only
Of course, those are just the stats from this term, and the all-time career stats do skew in Mbappe’s favour.
Mohamed Salah career stats Kylian Mbappe career stats
Games 619 390
Goals 300 297
Assists 151 128
Goals per game 0.48 0.76
Assists per game 0.24 0.32
Club only
However, some context is needed here.
Mbappe has spent the vast majority of his career in Ligue 1, a league which is not at the same standard compared to the Premier League.
It’s so hard to compare two players who are clearly world-class but not playing in the same league.
Luckily, these two have both played in the same competition on a number of occasions, the Champions League, and that’s where the numbers get particularly interesting.
Mohamed Salah for Liverpool Kylian Mbappe
Champions League games 68 77
Champions League goals 42 49
Champions League assists 18 27
Mbappe and Salah are very similar when it comes to Champions League stats, but Mbappe does just about edge it on that front.
Interestingly, at one point, these two could’ve been teammates. Liverpool spoke about signing Mbappe a while ago, but nothing ever came to fruition.
These two are undoubtedly two of the best footballers in the world, and it will be exciting to see both men on the same pitch on Wednesday.
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