Paredes: ‘I think Leo have a different talent than Ronaldo and Mbappe’

Leandro Paredes

considers

Kylian Mbappe

to be more like

Cristiano Ronaldo

in the talent stakes than

Lionel Messi

.

The Argentina international is well placed to pass the judgment as he plays alongside six-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi at the international level and at the club level he plays and trains with Kylian Mbappe daily at

. He also works with Brazil superstar

Neymar

at the club level.

Asked by

for his take on World Cup winner Mbappe, Paredes said:

"As a player, I think he goes more for Cristiano's side, more of an athlete. He is amazing physically.

"I think Ney and Leo have a different talent than Cristiano and Kylian, but they are physically incredible. And we must add about the quality they have."

Although Paredes admitted that Argentina are trying to not rely too much on Messi, the brilliance of their talismanic captain still leaves him in awe on a regular basis.

Paredes, who is currently on Copa America duty, added:

"When we had to play several games with Rodri de Paul, we realized that it wasn’t an obligation to look for Leo, but that we should find him when he can take advantage of things.

"I think that while his presence leads you to want to give the ball to him, he isn’t always the best option. He also has to be intelligent in that sense.

"What is most surprising about Leo though is that sometimes he gets out of situations where we believe that we have to start running backward. Sometimes you say: 'He loses it, he loses it', and he did not lose it. It's incredible.

"You say to yourself: 'Now we have to start running backward' because he is locked between three or four defenders and suddenly he comes out with a clean ball. On the pitch, you think: 'What did he do?! How did you get out of there?'"

Paredes, who joined PSG in January 2019 via Boca Juniors, Roma, and Zenit, is now experienced enough to play alongside legends in his stride, however, he also admits that first meeting the likes of Messi and Neymar can be daunting.

He added:

"It’s difficult before you arrive. You start to think about how they’ll be, how they’ll receive you, and how they’ll treat you. 

"I was lucky that both have treated me in the best way. They’ve both made me feel very comfortable, and I have a very good relationship with both of them.

"I really enjoy being able to play with them and being able to share the dressing room with them."

Follow

for the