PARIS (AP) – Killian Mbape has signed a new three-year contract to stay at Paris Saint-Germain after one of football’s most coveted players turned down the chance to rejoin Real Madrid, a man familiar with the deal told the Associated Press. on Saturday.
They spoke on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorized to discuss the contract negotiations in public.
The striker’s World Cup contract expired in June and would be available as a free transfer.
Instead of joining the 13-time European champions Madrid, who have been chasing him for so long, the 23-year-old Mbape stays to try to secure his first Champions League title at PSG.
Madrid managed to beat PSG in the Champions League this season, but not in the transfer market once again.
The failure of the Spanish giant to sign Mbape is a serious blow to its president Florentino Perez, who has been trying to postpone the transfer for a year.
PSG rejected Madrid’s official offer of 180 million euros ($ 190 million) – the same amount that Mbape of Monaco signed in 2017 – and even another reported amount of 200 million euros ($ 211 million) was not enough to sold his star, even though he had only one year left on his contract. Mbape said he wants to leave at the end of last season, but only under the right conditions for PSG.
The wealth of Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund linked to the emir allows PSG to withstand offers that could prove irresistible to other clubs without state funding.
Non-transfer reflects the changing dynamics of power in European football. Perez was one of the architects of the European Super League’s split from the UEFA Champions League, which fell apart within 48 hours in April 2021.
PSG refused to join the 12 founders of the Super League, which allowed its president Nasser Al-Helaifi to get one of the most powerful roles in the game as head of the European Club Association.
Perez is still pursuing his dream of a Super League in conflict with UEFA.
Meanwhile, Spanish league president Javier Tebas was angry.
“It is an insult to football that PSG will renew Mbape with huge amounts of money (who knows where and how to pay them) after losing 700 million euros in recent seasons and over 600 million euros in salaries. he wrote on Twitter: “Al-Helafi is as dangerous as the Super League.
Mbape, who is competing for France in the 2018 World Cup, would have been a signing statement for Perez – especially if he had lured Mbape away from a team that emerged as a rival only in the last decade through Qatari funding.
But the energy spent in pursuit of the transfer and the optimism from Madrid, which is chasing its record 14th European Cup victory when it meets Liverpool in the Champions League final next Saturday in Paris, proved futile.
When Mbape won the league’s best player award for the third time last Sunday, he said his decision was largely made, but did not say how.
Tensions between the clubs were evident when PSG were eliminated from the Champions League in the quarter-finals by Madrid in March – despite a 2-0 lead with two goals from Mbape – and Al-Helaifi remained under investigation by UEFA for alleged opposition from officials in match after the loss.
Madrid is thwarted again after trying to sign Mbape after leaving Monaco in 2017 – and even before that.
He visited the facilities of Madrid at the age of 14 and was welcomed by the French great Zinedine Zidane, but instead chose to start his stellar career in Monaco.
Mbape’s first professional goal came at the age of 17 years and 62 days, which improved Monaco’s club record held by Thierry Henry.
Henri is the record holder for France with 51. Mbape is already 26 and can overtake him as a player of PSG.
He is PSG’s second top scorer with 168 and could surpass Edinson Cavani’s record of 200 next season.
He wanted to add to his league lead of 25 later on Saturday at the end of the season a home game against the struggling Metz at the Parc des Princes, along with teammates Lionel Messi – the record seven-time Ballon d’Or winner – and Neymar.
The brilliant attacking trio, which did not click as expected this season, will play together again next season.
However, Mbape misses the chance to play with his French teammate Karim Benzema for Madrid in what would be a devastating partnership and the envy of Europe. In the last year, they were fruitful together for Les Bleus and the two celebrated when France won the final of the League of Nations.
Another wanted young striker in the world is Erling Haaland, who leaves Borussia Dortmund in English power Manchester City.
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Harris reported from Manchester, England.
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