This is news that should not please Kylian Mbappé and Real Madrid. In its traditional Weekly Letter published this Tuesday, theCIES Football Observatory this time looked at the fastest players among the clubs qualified for the final stages of the Champions League this season.
And there are surprises. Indeed, the number ten of Casa Blanca is not the fastest player of this 2025/2026 edition. He only dominates the ranking of center forwards, with a top speed estimated at 35.67 km/h, ahead of Loïs Openda (Juventus, 35.16 km/h). But not the general.
The prize for the fastest footballer goes to Anthony Gordon. The English winger from Newcastle United was flashed at 37.92 km/h, ahead of Anthony Elanga (Newcastle United, 36.65 km/h), Achraf Hakimi (PSG, 36.40 km/h), Nuno Mendes (36.12 km/h) or even Carlos Forbs (Club Bruges, 36.65 km/h).
Kylian Mbappé elected player who trots the most
As for the central defenders, note the surprise Abdukodir Khusanov (Manchester City) whose maximum speed was estimated at 35.80 km/h, slightly more than Kylian Mbappé. The French striker from Real Madrid was nevertheless given a much less flattering statistic.
The professional sprinter is the one who has covered the most distance at a speed less than 7 km/h. In other words, he is the player who has walked the most on the pitch this season (43.5%), with Victor Osimhen (Galatasaray, 41.9%) and Mauro Icardi (Galatasaray, 40.2%). Figures that say a lot about the defensive withdrawals of center forwards.
