NFL legend Tom Brady has shared his admiration and sympathy for France superstar Kylian Mbappe after his World Cup final heroics counted for nothing in Sunday's defeat to Argentina.
Both Brady and Mbappe came out on the losing side this weekend, albeit the stakes were much higher for the Paris Saint Germain star in Qatar and his teammates as they came within a penalty shootout of winning a second straight World Cup.
The 24-year-old phenom scored a hat-trick, including a sensational volley, to help his team come from behind twice and draw 3-3 after extra time at the Lusail Stadium and he converted his penalty in the shootout. But misses from the spot from Aurélien Tchouameni and Kingsley Coman saw Didier Deschamps' side lose 4-2 on penalties, agonisingly missing out on back-to-back World Cup triumphs.
Despite coming out on the losing side, Mbappe's performances in Qatar, where he scored eight goals, have only bolstered his growing legacy and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Brady shared his respect for the Frenchman on his Let's Go! podcast.
Reflecting on the Bucs' (6-8) defeat to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, which left them clinging on to first place in the NFC South and in serious danger of missing the playoffs with the Carolina Panthers finding form in recent weeks, 45-year-old Brady – a seven-time Super Bowl winner – said defeats are just as hard to swallow now as they always have been.
He said: "Man, losing sucks. That's just the reality. There's not a lot of explanation. I have a lot more empathy for guys who are putting in a lot more time and energy and things aren't going their way.
"That could be not just a football player. That's anyone in their job. That could be the guy working at UPS. That could be the guy working in the military. That could be the guy working in the sales office.
"That could be Kylian Mbappe, who scored three goals in the World Cup final, and you know what? The team didn't win. That's life. You're not entitled to winning. No one is guaranteed winning. No one is guaranteed tomorrow.
"The sun came up today, and you're going to try and make this the best day you can."
The Bucs squandered a healthy early lead at Raymond James Stadium, with two interceptions and two fumbles from Brady allowing Joe Burrow and the Bengals to surge back in the second half and claim a 34-23 win, with a botched fake punt also proving costly.
Brady has shown frustration at his teammates at times this season, with the Bucs a shadow of the contender they were in the past couple of years, but in the wake of Sunday's defeat he took responsibility for what happened.
"Unfortunately, I've had to do too much of that (losing) this year, so it is just learning from it and trying to do better," Brady added. "I woke up at 3am this morning just trying to figure it out. I had some really s***** plays yesterday at the end of the day. You can't win when the quarterback turns it over four times and that's on me."
