Argentina deserved to win that final: Mbappe

What many see as a lottery — the tiebreaker — decided the 2022 FIFA World Cup final. After 120 minutes ended 3-3 between Argentina and France, Lionel Messi's team triumphed in the shootout. Nearly three years later, French forward Kylian Mbappé has said that even though the match went to penalties, Argentina deserved to win that day.

On 18 December 2022, at Qatar's Lusail Stadium, Mbappé scored all three goals for France. Despite his stunning performance, he still finds it hard to forget the pain of that defeat — especially with the 2026 World Cup fast approaching.

The 26-year-old opened up about his upbringing, football career, and philosophy of life in a long interview with Jorge Valdano on Movistar Plus's programme Universo Valdano. Reflecting on the 2022 World Cup final and his hat-trick, Mbappé said, "In a final, you don't think about scoring goals, you think about winning. It was a crazy match. Argentina deserved to win because they played better throughout the game."

In that final, Argentina went 2-0 up in the first half, before Mbappé levelled it within two minutes in the second. Argentina regained the lead in extra time, only for Mbappé to make it 3-3 in the 118th minute. But the heartbreak came in the penalty shootout. "There were moments when we played well," Mbappé said. "But if you look at the whole game, their victory was deserved. It hurts, but we can't forget it — because in 2026, we don't want to experience that pain again."

Mbappé also spoke about his inspirations and admiration: "Cristiano Ronaldo has always been my role model, a true example for me. I'm lucky that I can talk to him — he gives me advice, helps me… to me, he's number one."

Before leaving Real Madrid in 2018, Ronaldo had scored 450 goals for the club. Now playing for the same team, Mbappé acknowledged the Portuguese star's legacy: "For Real Madrid players, he's an example — someone who's done so much for the club. The fans still dream about Cristiano. But I want to walk my own path."

Though Ronaldo has been his idol, Mbappé never played alongside him. But he did share a dressing room with Messi. After leaving Barcelona in 2021, Messi joined PSG, where the two spent two seasons together. Speaking with Valdano, Mbappé said what it meant to play alongside Messi: "Playing with Messi was a special privilege. I never imagined it would happen in my career. I always dreamed of playing for Real Madrid, never thought of joining Barcelona. I assumed Messi would spend his entire career there."

Recalling the experience of having Messi as a teammate, he said, "When you're famous, people start labelling you in different ways — as a person and as a player. But Messi is completely humble; he respects everyone and is truly unique. When you have someone like him on your team, just being close to him, watching how he does things — that's enough. Being alongside him helped me a lot as a player and deepened my understanding of the game."

In closing, the Real Madrid forward added, "I learned a lot from him, and I want to thank him for that. Those were two amazing years. Having such a unique player beside me was a golden opportunity."