2024-01-01T09:14:13+00:00
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/ Starting from today, Monday, the captain of the French national football team, Kylian Mbappe, has become a free player who has the option to sign with any club other than his team, Paris Saint-Germain, to wear its colors starting in the summer of 2024, in a new series rich in speculation. Will the French star move to his favorite club, Real Madrid?
Things were clear last summer in the mind of the speedy striker, when he sent a letter to his club indicating his desire not to extend his contract, which expires in June 2024, and things became tense between them.
But the tension subsided and calm returned to prevail after a dispute between Mbappe and his angry club for not being able to sell the player’s contract estimated at 180 million euros, according to the “Transfermarkt” website, which prompted him to temporarily exclude him from the squad.
Since then, the relationship between the 2022 World Cup top scorer and the president of his Qatari club, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, has become solid and firm, according to news about the capital team.
According to multiple media outlets, the player has given up a portion of his massive “loyalty” bonuses.
Asked by AFP, people close to the player declined to comment on Mbappé’s future in the coming months. The club has not made any official announcement in this regard for a long time.
Smiling or frowning?
Mbappe (25 years old) has tightened his technical grip on the team, scoring 16 goals in various competitions since the beginning of the season, far ahead of his closest attacking colleagues.
But the club’s administrators have overcome the panic that struck them last summer, and have taken time to think about the team’s fate without the number 7 player, stressing that they will not rely on a single player. They do not plan to bid on a huge annual salary of 72 million euros, according to the French newspaper “Le Parisien”, not counting the signing bonus.
They point out that the separation frees up investment prospects. However, keeping the superstar, after the departure of the Argentine Lionel Messi to the American League, and the Brazilian Neymar to Saudi Arabia, remains the best option.
To convince Mbappé, Saint-Germain is counting on a new project that began this summer, based on reducing the number of big-name signings in favor of building a team that relies on team play. Coach Luis Enrique embodies this project, even if his touches have not yet appeared on the green rectangle. But the methods and mentality have changed and may convince Mbappé to stay.
According to Agence France-Presse, the son of the Parisian suburb of Bondy is “worried” about his athletic development beyond statistics.
PSG will welcome back young Portuguese left-back Nuno Mendes, who had a great pass until his injury last spring.
The arrival of his international teammates, Randal Kolo Muani and Ousmane Dembélé, has helped bring a smile back to the team and to Mbappé’s face, according to a source within the Qatari-owned club. But in terms of behaviour, the striker has been moody: scowling in the matches against Dortmund (1-1) and Lille (1-1), and smiling against Metz (3-1).
At the slightest hint of discomfort on his face, speculation flares up: is his mind wandering elsewhere? Other sporting aspects can be taken into account: after struggling in the Champions League group stage to the point of elimination, he has reached the round of 16, where he will face an easy match against Real Sociedad of Spain, after two eliminations in this round.
Real finds its way
The global star is missing the Champions League title, after he supported his resume with the 2018 World Cup title, while his competitor for the Golden Ball award, Norwegian Erling Haaland, won the title in his first season with Manchester City in 2023.
“I know he wants to win the Champions League quickly, but he also wants to win it with PSG,” explained Eric Rapisandratana, a former PSG defender and current pundit on France Bleu Paris. To lure him, Real Madrid, his favourite club and a possible destination for several years, or Liverpool could wave their rich record on the continental stage.
Spanish newspapers, such as “AS” and “Marca”, are launching continuous campaigns to support the signing of the striker, while the “The Athletic” website reported that the royal team asked him to make a decision “by mid-January”.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid have found a new star, signing young English playmaker Jude Bellingham, who has been in sensational form since the start of the season, with 17 goals and 5 assists, and is taking the spotlight in the Spanish capital.