Mbappé and Hakimi: the story behind the friendship that the semifinalists in Qatar 2022

“If I don’t come to talk, it’s because I need to fully concentrate on the competition”He apologized to the press kylian mbappe. The 2018 world champion is obsessed with being the only two-time champion after Pelé, and he doesn’t want distractions. But all that changes if it’s about his great friend and teammate at PSG, Achraf Hakimiand that will now be his rival in the France vs. Morocco for the semifinals of World Cup Qatar 2022. Sometimes fate is like this, it puts you face to face with your loved ones.

Achraf (Madrid, 1998) and Kylian (Paris, 1998) were born the same year, but the Moroccan is 57 days older. Hakimi once told about his relationship with the Frenchman.

In 2020 they saw each other for the first time on a playing field. For the round of 16 of the Champions League, Hakimi’s Dortmund faced Mbappé’s PSG. The aggregate was 3-2 in favor of the Parisians, with a goal -from Neymar- assisted by ‘Kiki’. It was in those matches that there was some controversy because the players of the French team celebrated as Erling Haaland, then the German goalscorer, usually did.

Fate brought them back together almost a year and a half later. In July 2021, the arrival of the Moroccan to PSG from Inter Milan was made official for a cost of 66.5 million euros, becoming the third most expensive signing in the club’s history, behind Kylian (145 million) and Neymar (222 million). And since then the friendship between the two began.

The connection between the right back and the left winger was so natural and sudden that mbappewho at that time was already a heavyweight in the Parisian dressing room despite his young age, wrapped him up.

The trust between the two is so great that Mbappé at some point reproached Hakimi for not giving him a pass. “Did you see the video? You had to give me the pass”Told him. “Yes, Im sorry. I have seen it”the defender justified himself. “It’s not enough just to regret it, you have to give me the passes”refuted the striker.

Beyond the controversy, the friendship between the two seems unbreakable. In fact, the celebration like a penguin that the Moroccan made after scoring the last penalty in the definition against Spain in the round of 16 of Qatar 2022 It has a lot to do with Mbappé. It is the nickname Achraf gave Kylian.

Will it stop him on his way to glory?

This Wednesday (2 pm), France and Morocco They will face each other at the Al Bayt Stadium for a ticket to the World Cup grand final. As in 2020, hakimi Y mbappe They will be rivals on the pitch, this time with their national teams.

England, in the quarterfinals, left in the air the “secret” to stop the Frenchman: putting a player as fast as him on his back. Southgate he put Kyle Walker, from Manchester City, and managed to cancel it. The ’10 ′, who came as a scorer -still remains thanks to his five goals- from him, barely touched the ball 40 times and finished off only once on goal in regulation time.

hakimi he knows him, he is as fast as him, and he will have the mission to outshine him. The winger wants to continue making history, the winger dreams of being a two-time champion.

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