In the match against Marseille, Luis Enrique replaced the Frenchman in the 65th minute. And Mbappé clearly did not like it: the coach changed him for the second game in a row.
Kylian Mbappé leaves the field
Photo: Aurelien Meunier – PSG/PSG via Getty Images
Luis Enrique, for his part, explains it simply: the team needs to learn to live without a leader, who will soon move to Madrid.
Luis Enrique
PSG head coach
“Do people not agree with my decision? I don’t mind. Every week the same album plays, the same. It’s boring. I am a coach. I make decisions. “I am doing the best I can for PSG and I will continue to do the best I can until my last day in Paris.”
At the same time, before the match against Marseille, the Spaniard expressed his hope that Mbappé would change his mind: “Imagine that we win all four titles this season and Mbappé decides at the last minute that his place is in Paris. Why not?”
Taking into account that after the aforementioned match Luis Enrique already said something different, the question is whether Mbappé will play against Barcelona. During the coach’s Twitch broadcast, one of the fans asked the question: “How many subscribers do you need for Mbappé to play as a central defender for Barcelona?” Enrique joked that if someone donated between 2 and 3 million euros to the Xana Foundation he would leave the Frenchman on the bench. “And send me a check!” – He added. After the death of his daughter, the coach founded the Xana Foundation, a foundation that raises awareness and funds for the treatment of children with cancer.
Next week we will find out if Enrique was really joking or being serious.
There has been tension between coach and player for a long time:
“Is it true? Who is interested in her? How Mbappé’s relationship with the PSG coach deteriorated
Al-Khelaifi agrees with Luis Enrique. The owner no longer believes that Mbappé will stay
Kylian announced that he would leave PSG in February: Mbappé would go to Real Madrid as a free agent. For the Parisian club, the loss of its main star, and even for free, is a very painful moment, so the owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi tried by all means to change the situation in his direction. When he received a letter in which the player said that he was not going to activate the contract extension option, but would leave the club in the summer of 2024 as a free agent, the Qatari gave the player three options: renew, be sold by money, or to spend the season separated from the team, even without training.
Al-Khelaifi put Mbappé up for sale and even accepted an offer from Saudi Al-Hilal, but the Frenchman himself refused. After this, the owner dealt a new blow: he excluded Kylian from PSG’s Asian tour. Mbappé did not appear in the lineup for the first round match, instead he spent several hours in Al-Khelaifi’s office.
Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Kylian Mbappé
Photo: Antonio Borga/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
They spoke for a long time and, as El País reports, the result of that conversation was a conciliation agreement, according to which Mbappé rejected a bonus of 80 million euros and promised to transfer part of the funds from his signing bonus when he moved to Real Madrid. This was the price to be able to spend this season at PSG and leave quietly in the summer. Al-Khelaifi also reminded Mbappé that in the spring of 2022, when he traveled to Madrid for the first time, they agreed that after his departure the Club would receive compensation of 150 million euros.
The settlement clause will come into effect when Kylian signs a contract with Real Madrid. The amount of the second part of the payment depends directly on the amount that the Frenchman agrees with Florentino Pérez. The footballer and the president of Real have not yet shaken hands, as confirmed by the Spanish media linked to the club: all negotiations will take place in June, now the footballer knows the general provisions of the proposal, similar to that of 2022. .
Although everything is fine in Madrid without the Frenchman:
Does Real Madrid really need Mbappé? After a game like this there are big doubts.
At the same time, club sources told El País that Mbappé’s substitutes in recent matches have nothing to do with Al-Khelaifi’s decision: Luis Enrique is really rebuilding the team, preparing it for life without its main star. The owner, in turn, positively values the coach’s performance, who explained that Kylian also plays poorly, which has not happened to him in recent years.
The Qataris are now trying to distance themselves from the footballer, they are already clear that Mbappé will leave. Now they are waiting for the Frenchman to sign a contract with Madrid to finalize the amount that will end up in the Parisians’ accounts after his departure. One way or another, Al-Khelaifi achieved his goal: the main star will not leave for free.
How Mbappé will fit in at the Madrid club:
How will Mbappé change Real Madrid’s formation? Analyzing
