Kylian Mbappe reveals the ‘mistake’ he made when he left Paris Saint-Germain to join Real Madrid.
The 25-year-old’s transfer saga dragged on for months but finally ended in the summer when he joined the Spanish giants on a free.
He became a true stalwart in his time at PSG, becoming their all-time record goalscorer with 256, as well as playing alongside the likes of Neymar, Thiago Silva and Lionel Messi.
However, Mbappe made his dream to play for Real Madrid no secret with links to the Spanish club resurfacing every time his PSG contract came up for renewal.
Since joining Real Madrid, things have been far from ideal for Mbappe. Five goals in his first eight league games, but a recent run of form has seen him come under intense scrutiny.
He was also dropped by the France national side and missed two penalties.
Mbappe has now opened up on his departure from PSG, highlighting where he thinks things went wrong.
“PSG, the club meant a lot to me,” Mbappe said in an interview with Clique on Canal.
“I spent seven years, it’s a super intense place, in the good and the bad. I spent seven extraordinary years. Maybe the mistake was that I messed everything up.
“I had conflicts with people, I defended my rights as a player but that didn’t represent the club.
“I never mixed everything up with the players, the people at the Campus, the people on staff.”
The forward’s final season with PSG began in fairly acrimonious circumstances after reports suggested that the campaign would end with his departure.
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The club had reportedly been keen to recover a fee for Mbappe and cash in over the summer of 2023 with a year left on his deal, but no move came and he left for free 12 months later.
Tensions continued, with his official announcement that he would be leaving at the end of the 2023/24 season not coming through the official club channels.
Mbappe announced: “With the supporters, I could have been more expressive. They say to themselves ‘Kylian doesn’t care’. They think it was a hobby before going to Madrid.
“I still watch PSG matches. I know the club by heart. When they lose, I know how difficult it is. We have to talk about PSG because it’s the club that sells. It’s PSG that feeds everyone.
“I’ve always kept this connection with PSG. It’s a relationship that can’t be cut off like that.
“I still watch PSG matches, I played there for seven years. I know very well what state of mind the players are in, and how difficult it is because everyone is picking on people with this obsession with the Champions League. I have always kept in touch with PSG.”
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Mbappy joked: “Will PSG win the Champions League? For now, I don’t hope so because I want to win it.
“In the future, I hope they win because people have suffered a lot. But not now, because I have to win it.
“My story in Paris, I wrote it. I broke records, I won titles. Now I’m at the best club in the world.”
The 25-year-old was quick to reiterate he parted PSG on good terms, despite reports his relationship with club chief Nasser Al-Khelaifi deteriorated.
With the club perhaps sensing that the battle to keep hold of their prize player was all but over, reports materialised that the Emir of Qatar himself would intervene to try and turn the tide.
However, according to Mbappe, he in fact understood that his heart was set on Madrid, and instead thanked the player for his seven years of service and chose not to table one last counter offer.
“I was in the car and news came out that the Emir of Qatar was going to make an irresistible offer to stay at PSG.
“You see, they think I’m going to make you an offer but you’ve decided to leave and I respect your decision. You want to achieve your dream of going to Real Madrid, thank you for everything.
“That touched me. I told him that I would give my best until the end of the season.
“Relations with the Emir have always been great.”