Kluivert: Mbappe will win the Ballon d'Or shortly

According to Barcelona legend Patrick Kluivert, Kylian Mbappe will not have to wait very long to claim the Ballon d'Or.

Mbappe was generally anticipated to join

when his contract with

ended in June, but he chose to stay in the French capital and sign a three-year deal.

The 23-year-old mentioned the project evolving at PSG as a reason for his desire to win the

for the first time.

Mbappe was sensational this season, scoring 28 league goals, second only to Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski's (35) total across Europe's top five leagues.

No player in Europe's top leagues had more direct goal participation (45) than the France international, who was followed by his fellow countryman Karim Benzema with 39.

Mbappe is expected to lead France to World Cup greatness in Qatar later this year, and Kluivert thinks it is only a matter of time before the PSG superstar receives the Ballon d'Or.

"Mbappe is one of the best players out there at the moment," former PSG director of football Kluivert told Spanish daily Mundo Deportivo.

"I congratulate him on his recent renewal with the team. I think he will win the Ballon d'Or shortly."

Kluivert also spoke about his previous club, Barcelona, who finished second in LaLiga despite being in ninth place when Xavi took over following Ronald Koeman's sacking in late October.

In order to bridge the gap on Champions League and

champions Real Madrid, Xavi will be charged with renovating in the summer window.  

Kluivert was a teammate of Xavi at Camp Nou, and he encouraged his old friend to turn the club's fortunes around. 

"Next season he will have many possibilities to improve the team, I have a lot of faith in him," Kluivert said.

"The club has very good young players who know the values ​​of the club. I am confident that Barca will return to where it was."

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