DPA
Hamburg
France captain Kylian Mbappé has heaped praise on his Portugal counterpart Cristiano Ronaldo but hopes that he will prevail in their quarter-final showdown at Euro 2022 on Friday.
“I like the way he plays. His goals, his trophies, his CV all speak for him. He has inspired generations,” Mbappé told reporters on Friday.
“He is unique. There is only one Cristiano Ronaldo and there will always only be one Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I just hope he won’t be happy tomorrow,” said Mbappé, who will arrive at Real Madrid in summer, where Ronaldo played from 2009 until 2018.
Ronaldo is yet to find the net in Germany as he badly wants to become the first player to score at six Euros. He was in tears after missing a penalty in the last 16 against Slovenia. At 39, he would also be the oldest scorer ever, unless his 41-year-old team-mate Pepe steals the show.
France coach Didier Deschamps said that Ronaldo “has this ability, beyond the motivation that’s in him, to win, to be decisive, to score goals. He’ll always have that, even though he’s getting on in years.
He’s still a great, great competitor.”
Scoring is also an issue for France whose 1-0 wins in the group stage over Austria and in the last 16 over Belgium came from own goals.
Les Bleus’ only other goal came from an Mbappé penalty as they are yet to find the net from open play in 360 Euros minutes.
But Deschamps remained upbeat, saying: “What’s positive is the number of chances we’re creating. What’s negative is being less effective.
It’s important to improve our efficiency.
“We’ll need all our players to be at their best given the quality of Portugal.”
The match is rematch of the 2016 final where Portugal broke French hearts by lifting the trophy at the Stade de France. But France have beaten Portugal in the semi-finals of the 1984 and 2000 Euros and 2006 World Cup.
“It could come down to a few things, the ability of certain players to make the difference. We’re one of the best teams in Europe. I’m convinced it’s going to be a big game tomorrow,” Deschamps said.
“Historically, these have always been close matches, but at this stage of the competition it’s rare for there to be a big difference (between teams).”
