‘Mbappe wants to be Neymar when he’s not playing!’ – PSG star’s state of mind questioned by Rothen

The 21-year-old is his side’s top scorer so far this season but hasn’t always met his own high standards with his performances

Kylian Mbappe has scored 11 goals in 11 games in Ligue 1 this season, but former Paris Saint-Germain winger Jerome Rothen has raised concerns about his state of mind.

PSG trail Sunday’s opponents Lille in the French top-flight title race and, despite his goal return, Mbappe has not always looked at his sharpest this season.

Transfer talk continues to surround the 21-year-old. Though PSG director Leonardo says he is confident Mbappe will sign a new contract , links with Real Madrid persist.

“There is some concern about his state of mind,” Rothen told RMC Sport . “Mbappe’s attitude suggests a player who is lacking some confidence in himself and who realises he has more difficulty when the level is higher.

“He is often scrutinised, and we are very demanding with him. He can improve because he is young, but we don’t feel too much progress. There are plenty of things where we can see that he has trouble.

“Against Istanbul [Basaksehir], I felt he did well. But when Neymar is not there, he wants to be Neymar and when he is there, he wants to be like him.

“We can be sceptical about his performance, there is the impression that his future lies somewhere other than at PSG.”   

Despite only turning 22 in December, Mbappe scored his 100th goal in PSG colours earlier this month and broke a Champions League goalscoring record set by Lionel Messi only a few days later.

Madrid have been the club most strongly linked with him, along with Liverpool, but Bayern Munich chief Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has ruled out any chance of a move to the Bundesliga .

Mbappe has said that one way or the other, the decision will come down to himself and his family.

“We make every decision together, as a family. I think it’s the strongest possible thing,” Mbappe told Copa90 . “This has pushed me higher and allowed me to be where I am today.

“Without them, it would be impossible, because sometimes you have bad moments. When you have bad moments in your career, you can see which people are there for you, and my parents are there for me every time.”

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