Mbappe and Ronaldo clash in a passing of the baton quarterfinal match

It’s the Christmas break before Real Madrid clinch the much awaited La Decima. At the team’s training complex at Valdebebas, it is business as usual. One after another the crème de la crème of luxury cars and world football are arriving for a holiday break training session.

Greeting them inside the facility is a twitchy 13-year-old, wearing the club’s original jacket. The boy, who has come to the Spanish capital all the way from the Parisian suburbs, has been in a state of shock since his inviter, club director Zinedine Zidane, received him in his car. “Should I take off my shoes?” he’d nervously ask the French icon. It’s Zizou who gifts him with the Real Madrid apparel.

For Kylian Mbappe, who turns 14 later in the week, the greatest gift arrives at last as the man postered all over his bedroom walls walks up to him. It’s his hero Cristiano Ronaldo. A cute little meeting illustrated on the pages of the comic book, Je M’appelle Kylian. As Ronaldo puts his hand around Mbappe’s shoulder, Zidane volunteers to take a photo. Click. This one is going down in the vaults. READ MORE