Rio Ferdinand and Owen Hargreaves claim Kylian Mbappe is BETTER than Erling Haaland

Rio Ferdinand and Owen Hargreaves have sided with Kylian Mbappe over Erling Haaland in a debate over which rising talent is the better player.

With the Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo debate dominating football’s landscape for well over a decade, fans have recently turned their attention to the next two superstars that will likely dominate the sport.

There’s little to separate the two ‘special’ players but, during BT Sport‘s coverage of Man City’s draw with RB Leipzig, the pundits explained why they favoured Mbappe.

Speaking after the game, Ferdinand said: ‘They’re two obviously great players. But Haaland needs a team to create him goals. 

‘Mbappe does as well but he can also go and create goals on his own and take the game by the scruff of the neck. I’m taking Mbappe.’

Ferdinand’s colleague, Hargreaves, said: ‘I’m taking Mbappe, everybody is. Haaland is a brilliant finisher but Mbappe can do things on his own, like he did in the WC final. 

‘PSG were terrible against Bayern and Mbappe came on in the second-half and completely changed the game. It was literally a different game. 

‘It’s hard picking between these two guys because they’re both so special.’

The French superstar came on in the 57th minute of PSG’s 1-0 loss to Bayern Munich last week and did put the ball in the back of the net – only for it to be ruled offside. 

City’s Haaland, meanwhile, played the full 90 minutes of his side’s 1-1 draw with Leipzig and only managed to muster one shot on goal all match.

‘For instance, today’s game, I think Mbappe would’ve created a chance for himself to score a goal. Whether he scores it, I don’t know. But he gets a chance out of nothing because of his ability,’ Ferdinand argued.

Despite his staggering goal tally for the season – 32 goals in 32 appearances in all competitions – the Norwegian has struggled in-front of goal lately.

Haaland has managed just one goal in his last six outings and has five in 12 appearances since the start of the new year. 

Later on the show, Ferdinand instructed City star Phil Foden to ‘trust the process’ laid out by Pep Guardiola after he was left on the bench in their Champions League visit to Leipzig.

Foden was as an unused substitute alongside some of City’s other international talents as Guardiola decided to play the entirety of the match without making a change.

Former Manchester United centre-back Ferdinand believes Foden’s absence from the club’s starters is a natural part of competing within a Guardiola team.