Kylian Mbappe has told Paris Saint-Germain that he won’t renew his contract, leaving the club with little choice but to sell him this summer.
This all started with a picture from the past. A young Kylian Mbappe sits on his childhood bed, leaning on the wall, while a collage of Cristiano Ronaldo posters surround him. There isn’t an inch of white space, just a Real Madrid legend plastered all over his room.
That image first came to light in 2017, when the then-Monaco forward was in search of a new club — already pipped as one of the best strikers in the world at 18. At the time he chose PSG, putting his childhood dreams on hold. But there was always a sense that he would someday be a Madrid player.
Six years later, it has become relevant again. Mbappe informed PSG yesterday that he would not be renewing his contract, which expires at the end of next season. This comes less than 12 months after he spurned Madrid interest, and committed at least another two years of his future to Paris.
The Parisians are now in a classic football predicament; they can either sell Mbappe now or risk losing him for free in a year. And Los Blancos still lurk.
PSG have adamantly declared that Mbappe will not leave the club for free under any circumstances. They insist that he will either change his mind and pen a new long-term contract, or leave for a handsome fee this summer. Mbappe, meanwhile, has insisted that he is not trying to force a move, and that he wants to play at Parc des Princes next year. But his good will — if not shrewd negotiating tactic — does little to chance PSG’s stance. If the Parisians are true to their word, Mbappe will likely be out of Paris by the end of August.
Now might just be the time for PSG to cash in, anyway. Mbappe is among the best players in the world, and a Paris native. But he’s also always had one eye on the Spanish capital. And at this point, when in need of striker, Madrid are almost certain to pay up.
So, PSG have been gifted the chance for Mbappe to leave on the most favourable terms possible, and they should take it. This is no longer about the idealism of a local kid, or the Ligue 1 title he would inevitably deliver next season. Instead, the Parisians face a financial decision, one intrinsically tied to the success of their side for years to come. Mbappe must be sold.
Selling Mbappe is not an immediate net benefit to PSG. There are, shockingly, football matches to win. And having arguably the best player in the world playing for your team tends to bring about some degree of success over the course of a season. Mbappe would be crucial in next year’s Ligue 1 campaign, and by default makes them slightly more competitive in the Champions League (although he can do nothing about the obligatory yearly collapse.)
He is an immensely talented footballer who will only continue to improve. That he is a Parisian who once resisted the allure of one of Europe’s biggest clubs to stick around makes him a marketing gem, too. He is, in effect, the only player who still has the adulation of PSG’s notoriously critical ultras. PSG are unfortunate that Mbappe has such a deep desire to go to Madrid — otherwise, this seems like the kind of footballing marriage that could last forever.
Still, romance aside, from a club perspective, Mbappe’s benefit is dwindling. The star player has started to become a distraction.
It started last summer, when he made massive financial demands to PSG, which were swiftly granted. He wanted more money, power and autonomy than everyone else at the club. And the Parisians agreed to every last detail — before celebrating it like they’d signed him as a bargain.
But they can’t necessarily be blamed for that. If this were anyone else, PSG would have denied the demands, and perhaps been more willing to get rid of the disgruntled player. So, with Mbappe, those celebrations — ones that were raucous despite the absurd €70 million ($75m/£60m) loyalty bonus they reportedly agreed to pay the Frenchman for every year he stayed at the club — could perhaps be forgiven. Football is often rather heartless, but it would have been one for the idealists to see Mbappe stay with his hometown club. READ MORE
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