Within 24 hours, Kylian Mbappe has gone from having reportedly agreed to join Real Madrid as a free agent this summer to there being “no agreement” regarding the France international’s future which “no type of influence could dictate.” Mbappe has started the year on fire with four goals and one title across the first two games of 2024 and the 25-year-old’s entourage have shot down the reports of a deal with the Spanish giants as quickly as they surfaced in the wake of Paris Saint-Germain’s 9-0 Coupe de France win over US Revel.
“There is no agreement around the future of Kylian,” read the statement from Mbappe’s camp which was published via RMC Sport’s Fabrice Hawkins. “No discussions have started. No type of influence could dictate the timing of Kylian’s discussions, reflections or decision.” Mbappe also said in the wake of the 2-0 Trophee des Champions success over Toulouse that “all parties are protected” regardless of what he decides and that it would “make no sense dragging things out” if a decision had in fact been made.
So, where are we exactly in the question of Mbappe’s future? Exactly where the French superstar and his entourage want us — as well as both PSG and Real — to be and that is in a state of flux where the only certainty is that the man from Bondy remains the most talked about player in soccer. We should expect this to remain the case for some time too. Mbappe’s real intentions are only likely to be truly known closer to the end of his contract, which expires this June with plenty available to win in Paris and elsewhere between now and then.
This is why you should expect a month of little actual change in Mbappe’s PSG situation and Real future.
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PSG
Making up his mind about leaving the French champions and having that be public knowledge makes no sense for Mbappe given that Ligue 1, Coupe de France and UEFA Champions League success are all currently in play at Parc des Princes over the coming months. We saw the Frenchman marginalized last summer when it looked like he might be leaving after he opted out of the final year of his latest contract and was made to train with the reserves as Luis Enrique’s squad toured Asia without him.
That stance only softened once Mbappe and his entourage reopened communication channels with the Ligue 1 giants which saw him reinstated for the 1-1 draw away at Toulouse, and the player and club’s relationship publicly has been better since then. This has not yet resulted in an official and confirmed contract extension, despite a new-look PSG on the field which has been assembled largely to his liking with a new French core and built around his attacking talents. Now, with six months left on his deal, he is free to speak with other clubs regarding his future beyond June which obviously includes Real.
It makes little sense for Mbappe to commit his future to PSG without knowing what will happen in the Champions League with Real Sociedad the French giants’ round of 16 opponents (you can catch all the action when the tournament returns in February on Paramount+), which offers a golden chance to reach the quarterfinals and potentially go deeper. Should Les Parisiens manage to do that while remaining dominant in Ligue 1 and progressing to the latter stages of the Coupe de France, PSG’s transformation into an institution ready to win big in Europe could be deemed ready by Mbappe, which could see him extend while another premature exit could have the opposite impact. In any case, his current employers expect to be informed first — not learn about his decision over his future, which they would like to be with them, via the press.
Real Madrid
According to reports, Real have already made their move and have set a mid-January deadline for Mbappe’s decision, which is unlikely to be appreciated and not just because it is reportedly lower than it was back in 2022. To accept such a proposal immediately would reduce the player and his entourage’s leverage, but it would also wreck any chance of enjoyable success with PSG and likely poison the relationship with six month left in similar circumstances to last summer.
Committing to Real this early, ahead of a potentially Ballon d’Or worthy run of success with both club and country, given France’s UEFA Euro 2024 and Olympic interests, would deprive Mbappe of the strongest possible negotiating position should he succeed — which he absolutely believes he can. It also is unlikely given the fact that, at this moment, the one thing that PSG likely hold over any other interested suitor, Real or otherwise, is the fact that they agreed to release him to represent Les Bleus at the Paris games this summer, which would be a big ask for any other club to match.
Should Mbappe tick off the Champions League, Ligue 1 and the Coupe de France by the end of the club season — already four total trophies should it happen — he could logically have his strongest possible bargaining position ahead of the Euros and Olympics. Why commit to Real when all of that is still in play and not an impossibility today? Los Blancos will still want him and be more likely to get him should PSG bomb out of Europe early, so it makes sense to be patient for the best possible deal before committing to one club.
Premier League
That best possible deal might not even be Real, nor PSG, as the latest is that Mbappe might be prepared to snub the La Liga giants and still leave Paris for a shot at the Premier League, as has also been reported in the past 24-48 hours. Liverpool have historically been linked with the France international, but other clubs in the richest league in global soccer could propose an interesting package, which changes Mbappe’s ideas regarding his future and where he sees the next few years of his career.
Any EPL club would have to answer the same questions that Real have faced, such as the possibility of allowing Mbappe to play at the Euros and Olympics back-to-back and therefore miss a chunk of the early season club action. However, any serious interest from England would also up the stakes for both the French and Spanish outfits who would not want to be seen to lose out in such a power struggle, which both could realistically be on the losing side of given the Premier League’s superior financial muscle, compared with both Ligue 1 and La Liga.
2024
The answer to what Mbappe ultimately decides to do likely lies in what is to come later in the year with the run of Champions League, Euro 2024 and Olympics arguably the key period in all of this, as that is logically where a Ballon d’Or could be won or lost individually. UCL success has been missing so far while a Euro remains a valuable goal despite already having a World Cup — especially a Euro as France captain — while an Olympic gold medal in Paris of all places is a once in a career opportunity for Mbappe.
With that all in mind, logically, Mbappe will remain undecided and see how things are progressing with PSG in terms of his continental ambitions and a return to the domestic dominance which people assume Les Parisiens exert which is actually not always the case across both competitions. Once the vision of the future in Paris becomes clear, a decision can then be made regarding Real, the Premier League or possibly even another suitor, before a shot at double international glory with France to create the strongest possible case for a Ballon d’Or win regardless of his club situation.