Right now, it's all about Lionel Messi vs. Cristiano Ronaldo. However, with both superstars approaching the final third of their respective careers, soon the focus will be elsewhere. There have been numerous players touted as possible heirs following when both Messi and CR7 retire, but right now this season, in the Champions League, the focus arguably is on Kylian Mbappe and Paulo Dybala.
At just 18 and 23 respectively, both the French and Argentinian internationals have had fantastic seasons for Monaco and Juventus in domestic and continental competition. Both will have the spotlights on them as Les Rouges-et-Blancs prepare to lock horns with the Bianconeri in the semi-finals of the Champions League. And both have been compared to iconic players, with Dybala likened to Messi as Mbappe has been touted as the next Thierry Henry.
Impressive, indeed. Only one of these two players, however, will have the chance to feature in the Champions League final, which is looking likely to be against Real Madrid.
But who comes out on top in terms of numbers? Let's have a look.
Paulo Dybala's stats
Games played in the UCL: 8 (570 minutes)
Goals scored: 4
Assists: 0
Chances created: 12
Games played in Serie A: 27 (1878 minutes)
Goals scored: 9
Assists: 6
Chances created: 49
Paulo Dybala celebrates one of his two goals against Barcelona in the Champions League. The 23-year-old outshone his more celebrated counterpart Lionel Messi thanks to his impressive brace to help Juve win 3-0 in the first leg
Kylian Mbappe's stats
Games played in the UCL: 7 (362 minutes)
Goals scored: 5
Assists: 0
Chances created: 5
Games played in Ligue 1: 24 (1167 minutes)
Goals scored: 13
Assists: 5
Chances created: 21
Kylian Mbappe celebrates netting against Dortmund to help Monaco secure their spot in the semi-finals. The 18-year-old has been compared to Thierry Henry and is on the radar of several clubs hoping to prise him away from Monaco this summer
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How do they compare?
In terms of goals, Mbappe comes out on top. The French starlet not only has scored more in the UCL than Dybala (5 vs. 4) but also has done so in fewer minutes on the pitch than his Argentinian opponent (362 vs. 570). The same applies for their respective domestic leagues, where Mbappe has 13 Ligue 1 goals in 24 appearances, versus Dybala's 9 Serie A goals in 27 appearances.
Some may point out, however, that traditionally the Italian Serie A is a much tougher league to score in than France's Ligue 1. In any case, Dybala has bettered Mbappe in two areas: assists and perhaps more important, chances created. Neither have an assist so far in the UCL, but in their respective domestic leagues, Dybala's got six assists versus Mbappe's five. And in terms of chances created, the ex-Palermo man has created over double that of Mbappe's (12 vs. 5) in the Champions League and domestically (49 vs. 21). Not surprisingly, he's also Juventus's top scorer in the Champions League. Mbappe's five put him second behind Radamel Falcao, who has seven.
Of course, Juve fans will be hoping that Dybala's colleagues will be able to convert some of those chances as they hope to head back to Turin with a win over Monaco. Les Rouges-et-Blancs, however, certainly will be relishing the chance to take on the team with the strongest defense in Europe. Will Dybala or Mbappe be the star man for their respective sides?
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