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Kylian Mbappe acknowledged the contribution from his Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) teammate Lionel Messi after he won the Ligue 1 Player of the Year award for the 2022-23 season.
The France superstar has been the club's standout player in their title-winning season. Mbappe has contributed 28 goals and six assists from 33 matches in Ligue 1 this season. He is currently one goal clear of Lyon's Alexandre Lacazette in the top scorers' charts.
The new France captain sent a special message to his fellow strike partner Lionel Messi for his contributions this season as well. During his acceptance speech, Mbappe was quoted as saying the following (via PSGTalk):
“Of course, I thank Leo [Messi], who has helped me a lot along with all the players."
Lionel Messi himself has had a great season for PSG this time around. He has scored 16 goals and has as many assists from 31 games in Ligue 1. The seven-time Ballon d'Or winner is currently the league's highest assist-provider. He comfortably leads second-placed Jonathan Clauss (11 assists) of Marseille with just one game remaining in the season.
Messi's overall record for the season currently stands at 21 goals and 20 assists from 40 matches across all competitions.
Both Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe guided PSG to their second consecutive Ligue 1 title and the club's 11th overall this term. The league is the pair's only major trophy this season as they failed to win the UEFA Champions League and the Coupe de France.
Messi, however, was part of the Trophee des Champions winning team towards the start of the 2022-23 season. He scored once in a 4-0 victory over Nantes back in July 2022. Mbappe did not feature in this game as he was serving a suspension.
Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe have developed an excellent partnership at PSG
The 2022-23 season could very well be Messi's final campaign with PSG as his two-year contract comes to an end. The Argentina superstar, however, has developed a great rapport with Kylian Mbappe on the field.
In their two years in the French capital, Lionel Messi and Mbappe have had 34 joint goal involvements from 66 games. Messi assisted Mbappe on 20 occasions while the Frenchman assisted the former Barcelona star 14 times.
The attacking duo also faced one another this season. Kylian Mbappe and France faced Messi's Argentina side in the 2022 FIFA World Cup Final which the South American side won after a penalty shootout. Messi netted a brace on that occasion while Mbappe scored a hat-trick.
