Kylian Mbappe has opened up on his relationship with his Real Madrid team mate Vinicius Junior ahead of the team’s Champions League clash against Arsenal.
Real Madrid will battle it out with the Gunners at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday in the first-leg of their Champions League clash.
The France captain joined Real Madrid in the summer from PSG on a free transfer ending years of speculations about his dream move to the Santiago Bernabeu.
There had been speculations that both players will struggle to play together in the same team, but despite struggling in his early months in Spain.
Mbappe has slotted in seamlessly in the team, and his relationship with Vinicius is getting stronger on and off the pitch.
He said: “The relationship [with Vini] is good. It’s normal that people want to talk about us, because we’re two famous players who can make a difference, but I came to Real Madrid with the idea of playing with Vini.
“I can’t imagine Madrid without Vini, I always had the idea of playing with him. We play well together. We can always do better, the fans always expect more of us and it’s normal, but I think we play well together and now at this stage of the season we’re going to try to help Madrid as much as we can.”
Mbappe endured a frustrating start to life at the Santiago Bernabeu with inconsistent performances before finding his feet to become the team’s top scorer with 33 goals in all competitions with 22 goals in the La Liga.
However, Vinicius Junior has not been able to repeat his last season’s performances that saw him became a favourite to win the Ballon d’Or award before he lost out to Rodri.
The Brazilian forward has scored 11 goals in the La Liga, and seven in the Champions League. He missed a vital penalty in the 2-1 loss to Valencia on Saturday.
Mbappe rejected PSG’s mammoth offer to make a dream move to Real Madrid.
He said: “I have no problems talking about money, but there are more important things. I wanted to play for Real Madrid. Money is important, but for me the most important thing is being happy on the pitch and in life.”
He admitted he did not enjoy the best of start to life in Spain, while rejecting rumours that be had hit rock-bottom due to his poor performances.
Mbappe said: “I know people and teammates who’ve had depression. I wasn’t playing well, but it wasn’t for mental health reasons.
“I didn’t like it when people said that, because it’s a serious subject … In Bilbao I hit rock bottom in a sporting sense, not a mental one.”
Mbappe will be in action when Real Madrid take on Arsenal in the Champions League on Tuesday.
