Kylian Mbappé’s mother, Fayza Lamari, has opened up about her son’s deep admiration for Cristiano Ronaldo during his childhood, saying it even made him feel “Portuguese in his head.”

“With Cristiano as his favorite, Kylian was Portuguese in his head. For him, he was Portuguese,” Fayza revealed. She explained that the young Mbappé would visit a friend’s house just to watch Portugal matches, passionately cheering for Ronaldo.

“He was in love,” she added. “He said, ‘I’m Portuguese.’” The revelation highlights how Ronaldo’s influence shaped Mbappé’s early football passion, before the French star rose to become one of the world’s best players in his own right.