Pochettino explains why Kylian Mbappe isn’t a complete player

Former Paris Saint-Germain [PSG] boss Mauricio Pochettino has pointed out why Kylian Mbappe is far from being the complete player.

The Frenchman has shone like a beacon at the ongoing FIFA World Cup, scoring five goals. On Sunday, he was instrumental as France progressed to the quarterfinal of the global soccer showpiece. He bagged a brace in their match against Poland as they won 3-0.

KYLIAN MBAPPE AND SIMILAR ACTIONS

However, his former coach believes he still needs to work on elements of his game. The former Tottenham Hotspur boss said the PSG star always takes similar actions, which makes him predictable to defenders.

To improve that, the Argentinian coach says he needs to understand space on the pitch better.

“What he needs now to be a really, really complete player is to read the space better, when he needs to go inside, how he needs to receive in between the lines, use the pocket […] He needs to be more involved in the game,” Pochettino said on BBC.

“[His decisions] are all similar actions.”

NOT DIFFICULT TO MANAGE

He further denied rumours that Mbappe was challenging to manage during his time with the French club. At the Ligue 1 champions, Pochettino spent 18 months before being sacked in June. There was talk of strained relations with the talented attacker Mbappe.

However, he said: “But the problem is, sometimes you need to manage yourself because we are talking about a top three, top five best player in the world, and it’s not easy for him to manage himself because he’s not mature enough.

“Still, he’s a child. But I think he’s doing well. Sometimes people talk too much, but I think it’s not like this.”

Mbappe carries the hopes of Les Bleus in their quest to retain the FIFA World Cup title.

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