‘In January we will have news from Mbappe’
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has provided an update in the club’s pursuit of PSG star Kylian Mbappe after revealing that he will have ‘news’ from the Frenchman in January.
Following three big-money bids in the summer – all of which were rejected by Paris Saint-Germain – Madrid look to have finally made progress in their quest to sign the 22-year-old.
Speaking to El Debate, Perez claimed that on the first day of the new year, “everything can be solved” in regard to Mbappe.
“In January we will have news from Mbappe. We hope that on January 1 everything can be solved,” he said.
Despite these comments, the Madrid president was quick to backtrack on what he had previously suggested, arguing that his words had been misinterpreted.
“My words were misinterpreted. What I said is that we have to wait until next year to hear from you, always with respect for PSG with which we have good relations,” he told RMC.
⚪️ Real Madrid President Florentino Perez has said in an interview that he is hopeful the club can sign Kylian Mbappe on a pre-contract agreement in January. pic.twitter.com/1LbJzIoZVy
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) October 5, 2021
Whilst a move to the Spanish capital failed to materialise in the summer transfer window, it was certainly not without trying – from both Madrid and Mbappe’s standpoint.
The French forward – who has 202 goal contributions in 182 games for PSG – was open and honest about his desire to swap the Parc des Princes for the Santiago Bernabéu – with a recent interview confirming what everybody already knew.
Speaking to L’Équipe, Mbappe admitted that he was disappointed not be sold to Real Madrid but that he had to quickly move on from it.
“At the time, a bit. When your ambition is to leave and you stay, you’re not happy about it,” said PSG’s No 7, discussing the decision. “But I quickly moved on.
“Unfortunately I got injured while on international duty. I came back quickly, I had the time to mourn over it while there weren’t any matches. When I came back, I scored and I performed well once again.
“When I say that lots of things were heard, I’m talking about something else – people said that I turned down six or seven renewal offers, no way!
“People were saying that I didn’t want to talk to Leonardo [Araujo, PSG’s sporting director], even though it’s the president [Nasser Al-Khelaifi] who wanted to take things over.
“When I’m told to speak with the president, I’m not going to say no. People were saying I was planning on messing around in the dressing room – again, not at all.”
Mbappé to L’Équipe: “When I say leave, I’m talking about Real Madrid. Real made an offer. I thought that my time at PSG was over. Leaving was the logical next step”. 🚨⚪️
“Other clubs? NO. I am attached to Paris, and if I had left this summer it would have only been for Real”. pic.twitter.com/rKIy9M6Nak
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 5, 2021
It was recently reported by The Athletic that the Parisians would’ve been more open to letting Mbappe leave had Madrid offered a figure closer to the world record sum – €220million – that PSG spent on Neymar in 2017.
With the Frenchman able to sign a pre-contractual agreement with the Spanish giants in January, it appears that Perez’s comments point towards that being a realistic possibility.
Related links:
- Kylian Mbappe admits he called Neymar a ‘bum’ during rant after being subbed
- Kylian Mbappe accuses PSG of making him ‘feel like a thief’
- Kylian Mbappe deletes Instagram post after Madrid move falls through
