Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted star footballer Kylian Mbappe's popularity among the Indian community while speaking at Le Seine Musicale in Paris on Thursday. PM Modi is currently on a two-day official visit to France and will join French President Emmanuel Macron for the French National Day celebration in Paris as the Guest of Honour on July 14.
While talking about the rising popularity of foreign players in India, he said that the Paris Saint-Germain forward is more known to the Indian community in comparison to France. “French football player Kylian Mbappe is superhit among the youth in India. Mbappe is probably known to more people in India than in France,” PM Modi said.
Mbappe has emerged as one of the best football players of his generation since his move to PSG in 2017. The Ligue 1 giants broke the bank to sign a forward for a transfer fee of €180 million from rivals AS Monaco. The 24-year-old forward went on to win four consecutive Ligue 1 Player of the Year award and has scored 25-plus league goals in the last three successive seasons.
In the 2022-23 season, Mbappe topped the scoring chart in Ligue 1 with 29 goals in 34 matches and also provided five assists. PSG retained the league title but were knocked out by Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League. French league winners and Mbappe remain without a famous UCL trophy despite having one of the best squads in the world.
In International football, Mbappe has scored 40 goals in 70 appearances since making his debut in 2017. He guided France to FIFA World Cup 2018 glory by scoring four goals, including one against Croatia in the final. In FIFA World Cup 2022, he won the Golden Goot for scoring eight goals, including a famous hat-trick against Argentina in the final, but Lionel Messi-led side won the thrilling game on penalties.
