🚨 Gerard Pique on Kylian Mbappe scoring twice against Barcelona: “I’ve seen people comparing Mbappe with Raphinha because of the goals they’ve scored this season. Raphinha is having a fantastic season. I don’t think anybody can seriously argue otherwise. But I watched Mbappe against Barcelona, and I think people need to understand something about defending against players like him. It’s exhausting. And I don’t mean physically. Of course, he’s quick, everybody knows that. I’m talking about what happens in your head. I remember playing against Cristiano at Madrid. Sometimes we’d have 20 minutes where he barely touched the ball. And you’d think, okay, we’re controlling this quite well. Then you’d look over your shoulder and he’d be moving again. You’d tell the other defender, ‘Watch him.’ He’d say, ‘I’m watching him.’ And you’d say, ‘No, watch him properly.’ Because you knew one mistake could undo everything you’d done for the previous hour. That’s what Mbappe does. Against Barcelona, you could see the defenders constantly checking where he was. He makes a run, you follow him. He stops, you stop. He goes again, and now you’re wondering whether to stay with him or hold your position. And while you’re making that decision, the midfielder has already played the pass. That’s the problem. People watch the goals and say, ‘Well, the defending should’ve been better.’ Sometimes it should. But try making the correct decision every single time against a striker who only needs you to get it wrong once. I remember after one Classico, one of our defenders came into the dressing room and said, ‘I don’t understand how he keeps finding space when we know exactly what he’s trying to do.’ And I told him, ‘That’s why he’s one of the best.’ You can study a player all week. You can watch every movement he’s made in the last ten matches. Then the game starts, and he does the same thing you’ve prepared for. And somehow he still gets there first. Mbappe scored twice at Camp Nou. He could’ve had other opportunities too. That tells you how much trouble he caused. And the thing I find funny is that people have become so used to his numbers that they sometimes speak about him as though he’s declining whenever somebody else is scoring more. Raphinha scoring more league goals doesn’t suddenly make Mbappe an ordinary striker. Barcelona are playing very good football, and Raphinha is benefiting from that while contributing enormously himself. But Mbappe has something that very few players possess. He can make a defence uncomfortable even when his own team isn’t playing particularly well. You don’t have to dominate possession for him to hurt you. You don’t even have to create 10 chances. Give him the right ball twice, and you might concede twice. That’s a horrible situation for a defender. Because you can spend ninety minutes doing almost everything correctly and still walk off the pitch feeling like you’ve had a terrible game. I can imagine some of Barcelona’s defenders getting home after that match and still thinking about the runs he made. I’ve been there. And believe me, when you’ve spent an entire evening trying to stop a player like that, the last thing you want is somebody showing you the goals again. So yes, Raphinha deserves his praise. But anybody suggesting Mbappe has stopped being one of the best forwards in the world should try defending against him for 90 minutes. I suspect they’d change their opinion quite quickly.”

🚨 Toni Kroos on Yan Diomande’s performance against Barcelona: “what impressed me most wasn’t even his dribbling. It was how comfortable he looked playing in a match of that magnitude. People sometimes underestimate how difficult El Clasico can be for a young player. You can be excellent in training, play well against other teams, and then suddenly find yourself making decisions you wouldn’t normally make because you’re worried about losing the ball. But Yan didn’t seem to have that problem. I remember something Carlo Ancelotti used to tell us before these matches. He’d say, ‘Don’t start playing a different kind of football just because the opponent is Barcelona. Trust what you know.’ And I think Diomande understood that. There was a moment when he received the ball with two Barcelona players closing him down. He could’ve played a simple pass backwards, nobody would’ve complained. Instead, he tried to get past them. Now, whether he succeeded or not wasn’t really the important part for me. It was the fact that he recognised an opportunity to attack and had the confidence to attempt it. That’s something you cannot easily teach. Of course, there were moments when his decision making could’ve been better. He had a good chance to score, and there was another situation where Mbappe made a run that he didn’t recognise. Those things will improve with experience. But I would be much more concerned about a young winger who gets everything right because he’s too frightened to try anything difficult. What I particularly liked was what happened when he lost possession. He didn’t stand there looking disappointed. He immediately tried to recover the ball. And then, when Madrid had possession again, he wanted it. I remember playing with young players who would make one mistake and spend the next ten minutes avoiding responsibility. You could see them looking for the safest possible pass. With Yan, it was almost the opposite. He’d make a mistake, and the next time the ball came towards him, he’d try something again. That’s a very good mentality to have. With Vini, the competition is healthy, especially at Real Madrid. If a young player gets an opportunity and performs like Diomande did, then he deserves to be taken seriously. And there’s something else. When a young player starts an El Classico because somebody else is unavailable, the usual question is whether he can handle the occasion. Watching Diomande, I found myself thinking about something different. What happens when he gets another 50 or 60 matches at this level? Because the confidence is already there. The ability is clearly there. What he needs now is experience, better decisions in the final third, and consistency. If he develops those things, Madrid will have a very serious player. And I think the most encouraging part is that he didn’t look like somebody who was simply grateful to be playing against Barcelona. He looked like somebody who believed he belonged on that pitch. For a young player at Real Madrid, that’s a very important difference.”

🚨 Kylian Mbappe on Yan Diomande’s emergence at Real Madrid: “I told Yan something after the Barcelona game. I said, ‘You know you’ve made things difficult for yourself now?’ He looked at me and asked, ‘Why?’ I said, ‘Because after a performance like that, nobody is going to let you have a quiet game anymore.’ He started laughing. But I was serious. When you’re young and you get an opportunity in a match like El Classico, people expect you to be nervous. Maybe you keep things simple, pass the ball, don’t make mistakes. Yan wasn’t interested in that. Before the match, I remember asking him if he was feeling the pressure. He said, ‘A little.’ I told him, ‘Good. That means you understand where you are.’ Then the game started, and he was taking on defenders like we were playing a training match. At one point I went over to him and said, ‘Yan, when I make that run, you have to look for me.’ He said, ‘I saw you.’ I said, ‘Then why didn’t you pass?’ He smiled and said, ‘I thought I could beat him.’ I told him, ‘Okay, but next time, beat him and then pass.’ That’s the thing with him. He has so much confidence in what he can do. Sometimes that confidence will make him choose the wrong option. He had a big opportunity to score, and he’ll be disappointed he didn’t take it. But you cannot ask a young winger to be fearless and then become angry every time he attempts something ambitious. You have to help him understand when to take the risk and when to release the ball. What I particularly liked was his defensive work. There were moments when Barcelona were trying to build attacks, and Yan was already running back to help. That’s important because at Real Madrid, it’s not enough to be dangerous when we have possession. And yes, people will talk about Vinicius. Vini is one of the best players in the world. One performance doesn’t change that. But this is Real Madrid. If somebody gets an opportunity and performs well, the manager has to think about it. That’s how competition works at a club like this. I remember telling Yan in the dressing room, ‘Don’t start thinking about whose position you’re taking. Just make sure the manager keeps finding reasons to play you.’ He said, ‘That’s what I’m trying to do.’ And I believe him. The funny thing is, he didn’t even score against Barcelona, and we’re having this conversation. Imagine what happens when he starts putting those chances away. I think we’re going to enjoy playing with him. Although I would appreciate it if he started seeing some of my runs.”