Erling Haaland vs Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo: Vincent Kompany Makes His Picks

• Vincent Kompany was cornered to make his pick between Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland
• Both players are widely considered to take over the Lionel Messi-Cristiano Ronaldo rivalry
• Kompany ventured into management after leading a trophy-laded career at Manchester City

Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe are setting themselves up nicely to take over the decade-long rivalry between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Messi and Ronaldo have dominated football for so long, with the two forwards widely considered the best footballers.

With both of them now nearing the end of their careers, there has been talk of who can step up and fill the huge boots. It is a no-brainer that Mbappe would be the first choice for many people. The Paris Saint-Germain forward already has a World Cup title in his trophy cabinet.

There might be noticeable difference between Mbappe and his closest competitors in the same age bracket, but Haaland has surely thrust himself into the limelight.

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Currently at 42 goals and counting, the Norwegian has established himself as the most potent striker in world football. Perhaps his only downside compared to Mbappe is that he rarely creates chances. He largely relies on the brilliance of teammates around him.

Asked to choose one of the two, Manchester City legend Vincent Kompany settled on Mbappe. The Burnley manager also picked seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi over his archnemesis Ronaldo.

Kompany is a Premier League legend, having won four titles during his time in England. He will be hoping to guide Burnley back to top-flight football one season after they went down.

Updated Ballon d'Or rankings

Sports Brief also reported that Lionel Messi remains the front-runner to win a record eighth Ballon d'Or title when the ceremony goes down sometime in October this year.

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His World Cup heroics with Argentina have given him a perfect head start. Kylian Mbappe is second on the list after he almost single-handedly won the World Cup for France.

All this was before Paris Saint-Germain were knocked out of the Champions League by a ruthless Bayern Munich.