The French superstar has a strong relationship with his Brazilian strike partner at Los Blancos despite some suggesting that the pair would be unable to play in the same team when he made the move to the Spanish capital from PSG last year.

In an interview with the TV channel La Sexta, Mbappe said: "The relationship [with Vini] is good. It's normal that people want to talk about us, because we're two famous players who can make a difference, but I came to Real Madrid with the idea of playing with Vini.

"I can't imagine Madrid without Vini, I always had the idea of playing with him. We play well together. We can always do better, the fans always expect more of us and it's normal, but I think we play well together and now at this stage of the season we're going to try to help Madrid as much as we can."

Mbappe had long been linked with Real before joining last summer and admits that he turned down the chance to earn more money elsewhere because he was determined to play for the perennial Champions League winners.

The forward said: "I have no problems talking about money, but there are more important things. I wanted to play for Real Madrid. Money is important, but for me the most important thing is being happy on the pitch and in life."

Mbappe also admits that he hit "rock bottom" from a sporting rather than mental perspective after he missed a crucial penalty in the match against Athletic Bilbao last December.

The World Cup winner said: "I know people and teammates who've had depression. I wasn't playing well, but it wasn't for mental health reasons. I didn't like it when people said that, because it's a serious subject... In Bilbao I hit rock bottom in a sporting sense, not a mental one."