Kylian Mbappe has finally confirmed football’s worst-kept secret and will head for Real Madrid with the best wishes of Paris Saint-Germain head coach Luis Enrique ringing in his ears.
Mbappe announced on Friday that his seven-year stay at PSG will end this summer — and it seems certain he is heading for the Bernabeu.
It would represent a dream move for the France captain, who said he idolised Real Madrid as a child.
‘All I can say is marvellous things about Kylian Mbappe as a footballer and person,’ Luis Enrique said. ‘I understand his decision. He has been here for seven years and is a club legend.
‘He has given everything to this club, and this club has given him everything as well. I wish him all the best for the future.
Manager Luis Enrique has hailed Kylian Mbappe as ‘marvellous’ and a PSG ‘club legend’
Mbappe has confirmed that he will go to Real Madrid in the summer in an emotional video
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‘I have been proud to have him in this team. He has helped us and is a leader, and he has done so with a smile on his face.’
The move to Real is likely to hit Mbappe in his pocket, with his salary reduced to bring him in line with the Spanish club’s biggest earners, including England’s Jude Bellingham.
At Real he is likely to be paid £21million a year, barely one-third of the eye-watering salary he banks in the French capital.
Mbappe, 25, is PSG’s record scorer, with 255 goals, after having joined from Monaco for £165.7m in 2017.
World Cup-winner Mbappe will play his final home game at the Parc des Princes against Toulouse in Ligue 1 tonight, where the club’s supporters are expected to give him a hero’s send-off.
