Kylian Mbappe eyes Cristiano Ronaldo’s ‘unreal’ 1000 goal target after Real Madrid forward joins 400 club - ‘We have to try’
Published 14/11/2025 at 11:24 GMT
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Kylian Mbappe admitted he has set his sights on reaching Cristiano Ronaldo’s "unreal" career goal target of 1000. The Real Madrid forward was speaking in the wake of France's 4-0 thumping of Ukraine in FIFA 2026 World Cup qualifying, which secured Les Bleus' place at next year's tournament. Mbappe's second goal was the 400th of his career. He is only the third Frenchman to reach that mark.
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Kylian Mbappe admitted he has set his sights on reaching Cristiano Ronaldo’s "unreal" 1000 career goal target.
The France skipper scored twice, including a panenka penalty, as Les Bleus booked their place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a 4-0 victory over Ukraine on Thursday.
Mbappe’s second was his 55th for his country, meaning the 26-year-old is a mere three goals shy of surpassing Olivier Giroud’s France record of 57.
It was also Mbappe’s 400th career goal, though the Real Madrid forward was keen to play down that feat.
"Now, 400 – it doesn’t impress people," Mbappe told French broadcaster TF1. "If you want to be in this circle that shocks people, you have to score another 400.
"Cristiano Ronaldo’s [target of] 1,000 goals? That is unreal. But let’s try the unreal. We have to try it. We only have one career."
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Ronaldo is less than 50 goals away from reaching quadruple figures in his senior career, and, despite seeing red against the Republic of Ireland, expects to play at his last World Cup next summer.
Despite Mbappe's reluctance to talk up his career goal tally, he is only the third Frenchman, after Karim Benzema (503) and Thierry Henry (411), to reach that milestone.
Moreover, as per L’Equipe, at 26 years and 328 days, he has reached the 400-goal barrier at a younger age than Benzema, Henry, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Kane.
'Three World Cups are better than two'
After a goalless first-half, France ran riot in the second, with Mbappe opening the scoring from the spot, before Michael Olise fired home a second to settle any nerves at the Parc des Princes.
Mbappe then netted France’s third from close range, before setting up Liverpool’s Hugo Ekitike in the closing minutes.
"We feel proud, as the coach said in the locker room," Mbappe told reporters after the game. "We mustn’t take qualification for granted, even if it’s becoming commonplace.
"I think that in the history of Les Bleus, it hasn’t always been the case.
"On the pitch, the first-half was a bit more difficult because we knew that, given Iceland’s result, Ukraine wanted a draw to get back in front of them.
"We got a penalty, which helped us, that’s true. And then we played with confidence, we scored goals and created chances. Overall, the fans had a good evening."
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On his personal ambitions ahead of the World Cup, Mbappe added: "I needed to be the best version of myself to go to the World Cup.
"Last year, things were more difficult with the national team. It was important to play matches of my calibre again to show that the national team is still important to me.
"Things are going well at club level. The last few matches were more challenging, but there’s no need to panic. What I want is to be the best version of myself at the World Cup.
"Everyone knows football and how to analyse it. Playing in a World Cup, we know how special it is. It’s a privilege to represent France to the world. We’re going to represent all French people and leave our mark on our country’s history.
"We're going there to win, of course, like the other 48 teams. We want to win that third star; we came close. We want to use that.
"We'll never get back to that final against Argentina. Even if we win in 2026, we won't have won it in 2022. Three World Cups are better than two."
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