The Parc des Princes chief is confident that the Frenchman will ignore the advances of Real Madrid in favour of extending his stay in Paris
Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi says “there is no excuse” for Kylian Mbappe not to stay at the club following the arrival of Lionel Messi.
PSG announced the signing of Messi on Tuesday, tying him down to a contract until 2023 with the option of an extra year, with Barcelona having been forced to let the six-time Ballon d’Or winner go after 21 years at Camp Nou amid an ongoing financial crisis.
The French giants wasted no time in striking a deal for Messi, but negotiations with Mbappe over a contract extension have moved far more slowly, and it has been suggested that Real Madrid could prise him away from Parc des Princes before the summer window closes.
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What’s been said?
PSG could even lose Mbappe on a free transfer in 12 months time if they fail to tie him down to a renewal, but Al-Khelaifi sees no reason why he would want to depart now that Messi has completed their all-star lineup.
“The future of Mbappe? I think everyone knows. His future is clear. He said it himself, he wanted us to have a competitive team,” the Parc des Princes chief said at Messi’s first press conference in midweek.
“Well, we have the most competitive in the world right now. So there is no excuse for him now. He can’t do anything else but stay.”
The bigger picture
Goal reported that PSG were confident that Mbappe would commit his long-term future to the club after confirmation of the Messi deal, with talks between the two parties now likely to accelerate as the 2021-22 season gets into full swing.
Real Madrid have also been forced to shelve their interest in the World Cup winner for the time being as they focus on reducing the size of their squad, and are now prepared to wait until next year before testing PSG’s resolve with a big-money bid.
Mbappe has always been open about his ambitions to win the Champions League and Ballon d’Or, and his chances of scooping both prizes have surely been increased now that he will be working with Messi in Paris.
The Argentine has won four European Cups, firmly establishing himself as one of the all-time greats, with his quality in the final third likely to open up even more opportunities for Mbappe to shine as the pair form two-thirds of a fearsome attacking trident alongside Neymar.