"He has to adapt to that" - Thierry Henry makes Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo comment while talking about Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland

Thierry Henry recently compared Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, pointing out that they were once seen as successors of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. He highlighted the strengths of both players but eventually said that Mbappe is a better player than Haaland.

Real Madrid faced Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 playoffs first leg on Tuesday, February 11, at the Etihad Stadium. Ahead of the game, Henry and his co-panelists on CBS Sports Jamie Carragher and Micah Richards, and host Kate Abdo spoke about Mbappe and Haaland.

Henry first said about Mbappe (via GOAL):

"Kylian, for me, has more of a pass. I'll explain. This is a guy that's trying to play as a nine for one and a half years. They tried to do it at Paris Saint-Germain and it didn't work out too much. Now he is doing it at Real Madrid, the biggest club in Europe. He has to adapt to that."

Henry then spoke at length about Haaland. He also highlighted that these two players were seen as the next Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo but it hasn't happened. He said:

"This guy has been playing as a nine since the beginning of his career. We thought that they were going to be the two guys that were going to come after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. But now, instead of having a confirmation of what they are, people are still questioning the way they play. But not the stats, because the stats are magnificent in terms of goals. Maybe not the two best, but they are top.

"People will argue. People will say Mbappe. Some people will say Vinicius [Junior]. Some people will say Lamine Yamal is coming. Whatever. I'm just saying it is not a sure thing. We thought it was going to be a sure thing."

When asked to pick between the two, the Arsenal legend picked his compatriot Mbappe over Haaland. He said that the Frenchman offers more versatility and he also felt that the Norwegian needs to do more as a No. 9.

---

Erling Haaland recently beat Kylian Mbappe, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi to a record

While his overall play has come under criticism, Erling Haaland's goalscoring prowess remains intact. He scored Manchester City's only goal in their 5-1 defeat against Arsenal in the Premier League on Sunday, February 2. While it was a terrible result for his team, the Norwegian broke a record.

Haaland became the fastest player to reach 250 club goals in male football, beating Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Kylian Mbappe. He reached the milestone in 313 matches, scoring for Molde, Borussia Dortmund, Red Bull Salzburg, and Manchester City.

Kylian Mbappe reached the 250 mark in 332 games with AS Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain. Lionel Messi scored 250 goals in 327 games for Barcelona. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo took 451 games to reach the landmark with Sporting CP, Manchester United, and Real Madrid.