Following Paris Saint-Germain's early exit from the Champions League, Kylian Mbappe has been tipped to leave this summer, and Liverpool could be a possible destination.
For so long, PSG has tried to win the Champions League, but despite their tremendous spending habits and start-studded XI, they are yet to do so. A 3-0 aggregate loss to Bayern Munich saw the French club dumped out of the Champions League in the round-of-16, and former Liverpool striker Djibril Cisse has urged the Reds to sign Mbappe.
The French striker reportedly rejected a move to Liverpool last summer, instead opting to stay in France with PSG. But, with an aging squad and the French club looking no closer to winning the European trophy, Mbappe could be tempted to have a pop at winning the competition elsewhere.
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So, if Liverpool were to somehow break the bank and bring Mbappe to Anfield, how could he perform? Would he be the man to win trophies, or would the money be better spent elsewhere?
We 'signed' Kylian Mbappe for Liverpool from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer transfer window
To set up this simulation, we used the Football Manager 2023 editor to arrange for Mbappe to sign for Liverpool from PSG in the 2023 summer transfer window, using FM23 to run the simulation. We then simulated the 2023/24 season to see what sort of impact the forward could have.
Despite the firepower currently at Klopp's disposal, Mbappe was a starter whenever fit in the simulation. A few injuries saw the forward miss a handful of games, but he still managed to tally 35 appearances in his first season with a fantastic goal record in that time.
In 31 starts and four appearances from the bench, Mbappe registered more goals and assists than games played, scoring an incredible 32 goals whilst grabbing six assists across all competitions. He performed best in the Premier League, where the Frenchman had an Erling Haaland-like impact, scoring 23 goals in 23 games and ending the season as the second top scorer in the league, only behind the Norwegian striker.
Mbappe was unmatched in the Champions League, scoring nine goals in nine appearances and ending the season as the competition's top scorer. Mbappe didn't feature in the FA Cup and made three appearances off the bench in the Carabao Cup, failing to score in that time.
When compared to the other attackers in Liverpool's squad, Mbappe was the top scorer at the club with Mohamed Salah not far behind (27), though the Egyptian won 21 player of the match awards whilst registering the best average rating in the Reds' squad (7.95). That beat Mbappe's rating of 7.54, whilst the Frenchman won 12 player of the match awards in comparison.
Mbappe's signature meant that game time was less frequent for other forwards, with Luis Diaz featuring the most apart from Salah and Mbappe. Darwin Nunez notched 12 goals, but Diogo Jota and Cody Gakpo struggled, scoring seven goals between them.
At the end of the 2023/24 season, Football Manager 2023 put together an overall best Liverpool XI, based on performances, statistics and other metrics. This is what it looked like:
Full Liverpool best XI: (4-2-3-1): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Ugarte, Thiago, Elliott; Salah, Mbappe, Diaz.
Mbappe made Liverpool's best XI in the simulation, beating Nunez, Gakpo and Jota to the striker role as Diaz and Salah started alongside the Frenchman in the front three. Sporting Lisbon midfielder Manuel Ugarte also joined in the summer as he made the best XI, joining Harvey Elliott and Thiago in midfield.
Liverpool's results from the 2023/24 season with Mbappe in the squad
With the additions of Mbappe and Ugarte, the Reds were much better in the Premier League than the previous season. Klopp's side were in the race for the title all the way until the end of the season, but three draws in their final five games saw Liverpool fall just short.
If the Reds had won those three games, they would've won the Premier League, but instead, they finished on 85 points in second, five behind Manchester City in first. Chelsea also improved in the simulation as they finished just a point behind Liverpool, whilst Arsenal claimed fourth place.
Despite the addition of Mbappe, the Reds were only the third-highest scorers in the Premier League while holding the second-best defensive record. They may not have won the Premier League, but Mbappe played a major role in the Reds winning two trophies.
A thrilling first half saw Liverpool score three times against Chelsea in the Champions League final, with Mbappe notching the winner as the Reds won 3-2 to lift the trophy. The second trophy came in the Carabao Cup as Klopp's side won 3-0 against holders Manchester United, but Erik ten Hag's side won 2-1 in the FA Cup quarter-final to eliminate the Reds from the competition.
Overall, if Liverpool were to sign Kylian Mbappe, the Frenchman could become one of the Reds' best players as expected, scoring plenty of goals and helping Jurgen Klopp's side to two trophies. His addition saw the likes of Gakpo, Nunez and Jota rotated frequently, allowing Klopp to be creative with his front line in all competitions.
Would you like to see Liverpool sign Mbappe in the summer? Let us know in the comments!
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