“He is the best centre-forward in the world" - Carlo Ancelotti hails Kylian Mbappe as he shines in Real Madrid's win over Las Palmas

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti was in awe of Kylian Mbappe’s performance after their emphatic 4-1 win over Las Palmas in LaLiga on Sunday (January 19). Mbappe scored a brace in the match and Ancelotti declared him the best centre-forward in the world.

Following slip-ups by Atletico Madrid (lost 1-0 to Leganes) and Barcelona (drew 1-1 with Getafe) in their respective league games over the weekend, Real Madrid were expected to capitalize by winning against Las Palmas.

However, the game began in a rather unexpected way. Just 23 seconds into proceedings, the Whites found themselves trailing by a goal, courtesy of Fabio Silva.

Real Madrid took control of the game from that point and got the opportunity to restore parity from the penalty spot in the 18th minute. Sandro Ramírez fouled Rodrygo in the 18-yard area and Mbappe clinically dispatched the resulting spot kick.

By the 33rd minute, Ancelotti’s men had turned the game on its head. Mbappe’s effort was parried but the rebound went to Lucas Vazquez, who wasted no time finding Brahim Diaz to score from close range.

Mbappe doubled his tally and added a third for Los Blancos in the 36th minute, firing home a pass from Rodrygo. Six minutes later, the Frenchman thought he had scored his first hat-trick for Madrid, but the goal was chalked off for offside.

However, Rodrygo added a fourth in the 57th minute and the scoreline remained unchanged until the final whistle. Although he missed his hat-trick, Kylian Mbappe got his first-ever perfect 10 in a Real Madrid shirt, as per Sofascore's rating. Also, he was named the Player of the Match.

In the post-match conference, Carlo Ancelotti was effusive in his praise for the French star. He said (via the club’s website):

“Mbappé’s great form is helping us a lot. Our work today was very good. We managed to get the right balance to handle the good moments and the difficult ones.”

“He's the best centre-forward in the world. We could put him on the left wing, but he's a great striker and he's very comfortable through the middle rather than on the wing. He has a unique ability to lose his marker and in central areas, he can make the most of it.”

Following the brace, Mbappe has moved within touching distance in the upper echelons of the LaLiga goalscoring charts this season. In 18 games, he has recorded 12 goals and is four behind Barcelona’s frontman Robert Lewandowski (19 games).

Dani Ceballos heaps praise on Kylian Mbappe after Real Madrid’s 4-1 victory over Las Palmas

Apart from Carlo Ancelotti, teammate Dani Ceballos also waxed lyrical about Kylian Mbappe’s performance. Mbappé was involved in three of Madrid’s four goals and was named the POTM for his heroics.

Ceballos said (via the club’s website):

“It's been a long time since I've seen a player make as much of a difference on the pitch as Mbappé. This is the Kylian we had seen before. He was on fire and seemed like a cartoon character. It takes time to settle in. He has gone from strength to strength and has been a game-changer for us. We have to keep working and enjoy the victory”.

Real Madrid has now moved to the summit of the league table with 46 points after 20 games.