Kylian Mbappe has now made his decision to leave Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the season public. In what was seen as a move long coming, Mbappe will now finally have his first taste of professional soccer outside of Ligue 1. The striker now looks to reach even greater heights in his career with continued collective and individual success.
“I wanted to announce to you all that it’s my last year at Paris Saint-Germain. I will not extend and the adventure will come to an end in a few weeks”, said Mbappe in an emotional goodbye to the French club. The 25-year-old will leave the French champions as a free agent in one of the biggest moves in the history of the transfer market.
MERCI. 🔴🔵 @PSG_inside pic.twitter.com/t0cL2wPpjX
— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe) May 10, 2024
In the recent seasons, Mbappe has always managed to grab the headlines during the transfer windows. With his contract situation still unclear in the summer of 2023, the Saudi Pro League was determined to pull off one of the most lucrative deals in history to convince Kylian Mbappe to join their ambitious project.
Saudi Arabia’s approach to sign Kylian Mbappe in 2023
Kylian Mbappe shocked the soccer world by continuing his journey with Paris Saint-Germain in 2022. However last summer, Mbappe informed the club of his desire to not extend his contract expiring in June 2024. Consequently, the rumors started floating all over linking him to clubs all over the planet. Amongst them, one of the most talked about was a potential transfer to the Saudi Pro League.
Saudi Arabian club, Al Hilal explored the possible signing of the French striker and was ready to commit to a historical contract in the summer of 2023. According to reports, Al Hilal submitted a world record $332 million bid to Paris Saint-Germain for the services of Kylian Mbappe. The Saudi club even planned to offer a net salary worth almost $215 million per year to the former Monaco man.
Despite Al Hilal delegation flying to Paris Kylian Mbappé has rejected to negotiate with Al Hilal ⛔️🇸🇦 #PSG
Mbappé has currently no intention to open talks despite €200m fixed salary proposal plus 100% image rights.
⚪️ PSG, convinced that Mbappé agreed terms with Real Madrid. pic.twitter.com/bsbF0zlreP
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 26, 2023
Mbappe, however, rejected the offer and decided to stay at PSG for what was ultimately his last campaign at the French capital. The decision was applauded heavily in Europe as a response to the ambitious project of Saudi Arabia. It was a massive blow to Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Paris Saint-Germain who feared Real Madrid approaching Mbappe for a free transfer the next summer.
Real Madrid and Kylian Mbappe finally joining hands together
Real Madrid and Kylian Mbappe have always seemed like an association that was meant to materialize at some point in time. Despite that, for some reason or the other, the move has fallen off on multiple occasions. With Mbappe wanting to join Madrid in 2021 and the club submitting a $235 million bid, PSG turned out to be the party spoilers rejecting the bid. In 2022, when it seemed that Mbappe was all set to join Los Blancos on a free transfer, the forward decided to extend his contract with the French club.
⚪️🇫🇷 Real Madrid and Kylian Mbappé, all set to happen since February…
…and here we go, coming soon. ⏳🐢 pic.twitter.com/WbelHjIZL2
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 10, 2024
2024 seems to be finally the year when Real Madrid came out to be successful in their attempt to sign Kylian Mbappe. Pending official confirmation from the club, Madrid looks all set to unveil their latest Galactico after the Champions League final. The move will put to rest a transfer saga that has been ongoing ever since Mbappe burst onto the professional scene in Europe.