Kylian Mbappe & Real Madrid: Tactical breakdown of how Ancelotti will get the best from France's superstar

It has come as no surprise that Kylian Mbappe (25) has decided to leave Paris Saint-Germain after a number of successful seasons in the French capital. But now, after years of speculation on his next destination, it seems almost certain the answer is Real Madrid. What can Mbappe's new supporters expect from him? Where will he play? And how can he make Real Madrid better?

The evolution of Mbappe

The Frenchman will surely want to make an impact in Spain like he did in France, where he debuted for AS Monaco in 2015/16, but really started to prosper in the 2016/17 campaign. Under Leonardo Jardim, Monaco reached the semi-finals of the Champions League that season and surprisingly won the Ligue 1 ahead of strong favourites Paris Saint-Germain.

Mbappe was the epitome of that Monaco side, a feverish attacking presence that seemed impossible to contain and excited football fans around the world with his energy, unpredictability, and undeniable impact.

Since then, Mbappe has however, never seemed to rediscover the spontaneity he first displayed: his 2016/17 season is not only his best season in terms of overperformance on Expected Goals (+8.1) but also the season in which he was the most clinical, with his shooting accuracy (77.8%) and shot conversion rate (28.9%) the highest in his career over a single season.

It was also during that season that he recorded his best defensive stats, too (3.4 ball recoveries per 90 minutes, 0.24 interceptions).

In the summer of 2017, Mbappe moved to Paris Saint-Germain and quickly asserted himself as the league's star player. More and more, he's tended to take games by the scruff of the neck, becoming more of a soloist, as proven by the elevated number of shots and dribbles he records per game.