‘For me, it’s like a gift from God’

Kylian Mbappe believes Real Madrid are “the best club in the world” and playing for them is “like a gift from God” as the Champions League top scorer prepares to help his side attempt a quarter-final comeback at Bayern Munich.

France captain Mbappe scored his only club goal since February 8 with a 74th-minute reply as Los Blancos lost the first leg 2-1 to the Bundesliga leaders last Tuesday, meaning Madrid will have to end Bayern’s perfect five-match home record in this season’s competition if they are to advance.

“I love being on the pitch and feeling like I’m standing on the best ground in the world in a country that, football-wise, is one of the best in the world,” Mbappe told Spanish GQ.

“For me, it’s like a gift from God: to have the opportunity to live my passion, to play the best matches, to be at the best club in the world.

“I am always very grateful to be on the pitch, to get up every morning to do what makes me happy.”

Kylian Mbappe: ‘I’m in the environment I dreamed of’

Paris Saint-Germain all-time top scorer Mbappe netted four goals more than anyone else in La Liga in his debut season with Madrid in 2024/25, having joined from the French giants for a reported salary of up to £17 million with a £106.5m signing-on bonus across his five-year contract.

Madrid finished the season without a major trophy and are on course to miss out again in 2025/26, with Mbappe’s side currently on a run of two defeats and a draw in all competitions and trailing Liga leaders Barcelona by nine points with seven league games remaining.

“The hardest thing isn’t getting [to the top],” Mbappe said, reflecting on a career that has included winning the World Cup as a 19-year-old in 2018, when he became the fourth teenager to play in the final.

“It’s staying there and continuing to improve. A career never unfolds exactly as you imagine it. There are things you control and others you don’t.

“Today I’m in the environment I dreamed of as a child, because I’ve always tried to give myself the means to get there through hard work, discipline, and self-demand.

“Even with the pressure, the expectations and what’s at stake, when it’s time to step onto the pitch, football, for me, must remain a game, even at the highest level.

“Today I have a more complete vision, but I try to maintain the spontaneity that got me here. These days, talent isn’t enough. What makes the difference is consistency.”

Kylian Mbappe stats 2025/26

Now 27, Mbappe has 39 goals in 38 matches in all competitions this season despite missing seven games with a knee injury, sitting out five matches in a row between February and March.

He has scored two more goals than any other player in the Spanish top flight and had three more in the Champions League than his next-nearest rival, Bayern and England’s Harry Kane, before the quarter-final ties concluded.

Here’s a look at Mbappe’s 2025/26 stats before Madrid visited Bayern on April 15, 2026.

Messi, Ronaldo, Lewandowski, Benzema: Mbappe chasing records

Mbappe has already matched eight-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi’s highest-ever Champions League goals total in a single season by reaching 14 in 2025/26.

One more would put Mbappe level with iconic strikers Robert Lewandowski and Karim Benzema’s best-ever single-campaign tallies, and three more would equal the record, held by Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ronaldo and Benzema won the Champions League four times with Madrid between 2014 and 2018, with Benzema adding a fifth at the club in 2022.

Kylian Mbappe: Who has scored the most goals for France?

With 56 goals in 96 international appearances, Mbappe needs two more to break the record for the Bleus.

Lille forward and fellow 2018 World Cup winner Olivier Giroud, who is 39, leads the standings on 57.

Mbappe’s most recent goal for France came on his last start, in a 2-1 win over Brazil in a friendly on March 26.

France begin their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign against Senegal in New Jersey on June 16 (20:00 BST).