Mbappé’s PSG transfer: the on-pitch request he made during the Trophée des champions

Kylian Mbappé is now in his third season at Real Madrid, wearing the iconic number 10 for the second year running. But his love affair with Los Blancos could have begun nine years earlier had Paris Saint-Germain not intervened. Neymar’s transfer to PSG played a major role in Mbappé’s decision to join the Parisian club instead of Real Madrid. That revelation came from his former teammate Thiago Silva during the previous season.

Everything moved quickly for Kylian Mbappé. The 2016/2017 campaign was his first full season with AS Monaco. With the Monégasques, the young man from Bondy reached the Champions League semi-finals, eliminating Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City and Thomas Tuchel’s Borussia Dortmund along the way. In parallel, AS Monaco won Ligue 1 for the eighth time in their history, ending a 17-year drought. Mbappé was one of the key figures in temporarily halting PSG’s dominance in Ligue 1 since 2013. That was the first turning point in his career.

«Why did you choose PSG? Because PSG is my city’s team»

At just 18 years old, only months before his 19th birthday—which he could have celebrated as a Real Madrid player alongside his idol Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and Sergio Ramos—Kylian Mbappé decided to reject the advances of president Florentino Pérez, who was ready to put 180 million euros on the table. PSG matched that offer in the final stretch of the summer transfer window. In December 2018, Mbappé spoke to Marca about how his future unfolded. A particularly satisfying ending. «Why did you choose PSG? Because PSG is my city’s team. It’s like a kid from Madrid who supports Real having the chance to play for his team and going elsewhere, to another country. No, no, I wanted to play for PSG and I’m very happy with how things are going so far. There were a lot of transfer rumors, it’s certain we talked, but I believe that’s now in the past for me and for Real Madrid. Now I play for PSG and I will defend these colors 100%.»

«At the end of the match, he came to me and said: ‘If Neymar comes, I want to come too’»

However, Kylian Mbappé didn’t simply choose to wear Paris Saint-Germain’s red and blue because of his ties to the Paris region. His former PSG captain had spoken a few months ago to Ligue 1+ about the capital club’s current affairs. And Thiago Silva revealed a previously secret conversation with Kylian Mbappé after the Trophée des Champions in the summer of 2017. «I remember very well the Trophée des Champions against Mbappé’s Monaco. At the end of the match, he came to me and said: ‘If Neymar comes, I want to come too. You can talk to the president about it. I also want to be part of this team.’ Neymar signed and Mbappé arrived.»

«An incredible friendship formed from the start»

The scales tipped in favor of Paris Saint-Germain for Kylian Mbappé, notably thanks to the presence of Neymar, who arrived in early August from FC Barcelona for a 222 million euro fee. With the Brazilian star, the two men formed a close relationship that eventually faded over time. «An incredible friendship formed from the start. Then a few years later, what happened happened. I’m a bit disappointed by how things turned out. It should have gone differently.»

By Claire Mvondo — Security and State Policy Expert