'Mbappe isn't a real number nine' - Karim Benzema explains the problem of Kylian Mbappe at Real Madrid

Karim Benzema, the former captain of Real Madrid, has explained Kylian Mbappe's lack of initial effect in the Spanish capital, pointing to a potential problem with coach Carlo Ancelotti's team selection. The French attacker joined Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Junior after making the much-awaited summer transfer from Paris Saint-Germain.

Although they had just finished winning the La Liga and the Champions League, Mbappe and Real Madrid had not had a good start to 2024–25. In 2023, Benzema left for Saudi Pro League powerhouse Al Ittihad from Los Blancos, and he thinks he knows why Mbappe has had a rather less-than-stellar start to life in Spain. Kylian Mbappe needs to develop into a center striker for Real Madrid since he cannot take Vinicius Junior's spot on the left wing. Since joining Madrid from Paris Saint-Germain, Mbappe has made 14 appearances in all competitions, scoring eight goals, despite not scoring in his last five games.

Since then, Carlo Ancelotti has used the 26-year-old more centrally rather than in the wide position where he was successful with the Parisiens.“The problem for me is that Mbappe is not a center forward.’’ "Mbappe isn't a real number nine. People ask a lot of him and he's under a lot of pressure, this isn't Paris Saint-Germain."

"Every time he plays for France as a '9' he is not good, it is not his position. The problem is that on the left there is another player who is at the same level as him. You can't put Vini on the right or as a center forward, where he makes a difference is on the left. Let's see how Ancelotti does that.

Karim Benzema wants Kylian Mbappe to get used to the higher standards

Karim Benzema also mentioned how much more difficult it is to play for Real Madrid than Paris Saint-Germain, and he urged Mbappe to get used to the higher standards. Even though Mbappe has scored eight goals in 14 games for Real Madrid so far, he is still far away from the 44 goals he scored in 48 games for PSG the previous season. 

Benzema stated his opinion that Vinícius is the greatest player in his position right now, thus it is doubtful that Ancelotti would move him to make room for Mbappé. The football community is keeping a careful eye on Kylian's reaction to this new phase of his career.