PSG sells Kylian Mbappe
The France forward, Kylian Mbappe contract with PSG ends with end of the next season. The deadline of 31 July for Mbappe, 24 to tell PSG if he was going to renew until 2025. After months of talks, he has sent the club a letter saying he will not.
PSG’s record goalscorer would be free to leave for nothing at the end of next season and the move could be a negotiating tactic. Lionel Messi had joined Inter Milan on the end of the season after many offers from the clubs from different regions online.
However, as the French champions try to readjust their team-building policy after years of buying star players with no obvious coherent strategy, PSG have resolved not to let Mbappe go for nothing, with the club irritated that the letter was leaked in the media before they saw it.
It means that unless they get assurances about the 2018 World Cup winner’s future intentions, they will sell him in a move that would put Europe’s leading clubs on alert. Real Madrid are long time admirers of the Frenchman and he rejected a move to the Bernabeu to stay at PSG last year. Bayern Munich has signed Konrad Laimer from Leipzig with four years contract.
The exit of Karim Benzema to Saudi Arabia means Real need a striker, although it had been thought Tottenham’s Harry Kane was at the top of their list.
Mbappe career over the club
Kylian Mbappe, who joined PSG in 2017 initially on loan from Monaco before a 180m euros move, has scored 212 goals in 260 games. He has 38 goals in 68 games for France, including a hat-trick in last year’s final in Qatar, as France lost to Argentina on penalties.
Mbappe finished as Ligue 1’s top scorer in each of the last five seasons and has won five league titles in his six seasons at PSG. PSG ended 2022-23 with just the Ligue 1 title after once again failing to win the Champions League, losing to Bayern Munich in the last-16.
Mbappe would be the second high-profile forward to leave the Parc des Princes this summer, after Argentina forward Lionel Messi left at the end of his two-year contract to join Major League Soccer’s Inter Miami.
Neymar, the third member of PSG’s superstar frontline last season, has been linked with a big-money move to Saudi Arabia. This paves the way for Real Madrid to potentially make their move as they look to replace Karim Benzema. Carlo Ancelotti’s side have held an interest in Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane but Mbappe’s availability may be enticing.
Spanish outlet Relevo has reported that Ancelotti wants Kane signed this summer but Los Blancos president Florentino Perez wants to wait for Mbappe in 2024. That may change now that PSG are considering selling their striker.
Kylian Mbappe was in superb form this season, scoring 41 goals in 43 games across competitions. He was instrumental in Christophe Galtier’s side’s Ligue 1 triumph. The French striker rejected Madrid at the start of last year and penned a new two-year deal at the Parc des Princes. The new contract included the option of a further year which Mbappe looks to have told the Parisians he won’t be taking up.
PSG finished the campaign as Ligue 1 champions for the second consecutive season but it was a disappointing campaign. The Parisians made a last-16 exit from the Champions League against Bayern Munich. They were also beaten 2-1 by Marseille in the last 16 of the Coupe de France.
Kylian Mbappe enjoyed a prolific campaign but cut a frustrated figure during a volatile season at the Parc des Princes. He spoke after his side’s Ligue 1 triumph and admitted he wasn’t expecting anything from the club next season.
The French striker’s comments came in the midst of a tense situation regarding his teammates Lionel Messi and Neymar at the Parc des Princes. Messi is departing the Parisians for Inter Miami at the end of this month. Meanwhile, Neymar’s future is uncertain with the Ligue 1 champions keen on offloading him due to fitness issues.
PSG were thought to have been looking to build a young team around Mbappe. However, they could be set to endure their second superstar departure this summer as he refuses to extend his stay in Paris.
