Liverpool hopes finally dashed as Mbappe goes public in big future U-turn
Kylian Mbappe has killed Liverpool’s slim hopes and given the biggest hint yet that his time with Paris Saint-Germain may not be over.
Mbappe capped PSG’s 2-0 win over Brest on Sunday, but it wasn’t enough to seal the Ligue 1 title. That honour went to minnows Lille. Lille defeated Angers to win their first Ligue 1 title since 2011 in a huge shock. Mbappe, 22, might have been forgiven for calling it a day in the French capital after that.
In fact on Saturday French player representative, Bruno Satin, said Mbappe was leaving. He told French TV station Canal+ of an apparent ‘agreement’ between Mbappe and Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid.
“My feeling is that he’s ready to do it [leave PSG],” Satin said (via Caught Offside and translated by Marca).
“I also have information which says that Mbappe and his family have an agreement with Real Madrid.”
Mbappe’s contract in the French capital expires in June 2022. With just over a year remaining at PSG, speculation has swirled as to where his future lays.
Mauricio Pochettino raised English eyebrows last month when revealing Mbappe’s frequent questions about the Premier League.
Liverpool have been linked with Mbappe, despite the obvious problem over Mbappe’s huge transfer fee.
Jurgen Klopp is understood to have a “direct line” to Mbappe after speaking to him previously.
According to L’Equipe, Klopp spent “several hours” trying to convince Mbappe to join the club three years ago. Klopp apparently made an impression on the player, and that’s where the reported “direct line” comes from.
AS reported in March that Liverpool were “on the prowl” for the dynamic forward, whose price range is thought to be around €200m, plus his mega salary demands.
For his part Mbappe, who took his goal tally to 42 for the season, has never spoken directly on his future, but his comments after Sunday’s disappointment seem to suggest a big U-turn.
“Everyone knows how profoundly attached I am to the club. I have always been very thankful towards the president, my different coaches,” Mbappe told Canal+.
“What I want, is to win, feel like I am somewhere where I can win, where there is a solid project around me. The footballing project is essential. I want to feel like I am part of a team that is going to do something.
“Then, up to us to show what we can do, we are talking with the club, we will see what happens. In any case, I have always been happy here and I have had four exceptional years here, we are very clear with the club.
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Al-Khelaifi ‘not worried’ over Mbappe
“The club knows my relationship with it, this city, this country. We are going to do things in the way they should be done, in one way or another. I cannot say what needs to be done, I am just a player, but I think that people have seen, everyone has seen.
“When everyone sees, it is easier to draw conclusions, but there is no problem. We lost the title, but now, we have to concentrate on the future.”
Asked to address PSG’s league failure, he added: “The competitive side of us is certainly frustrated, but it shows that what we did in previous years was extraordinary and unreal.”
PSG’s president Nasser Al-Khelaifi is adamant that Mbappe will extend his contract in the French capital.
“For me, Kylian is a PSG player and will be a PSG player. I am not worried,” said Al-Khelaifi, as cited by the Mirror. “Do not worry, let us work. Mbappe is Parisian. He is French, he is Parisian, he is under contract and he wants to stay 100 per cent.”
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