Kylian Mbappe says his dream of playing for Real Madrid is ‘never over’ despite turning the Spanish champions down in order to sign a new contract with Paris Saint-Germain after over a year of speculation.
The 23-year-old winner agreed deals with both clubs over the course of the past few weeks, but ultimately chose to remain with his current club after consulting figure including current French president and predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy about his future.
Real Madrid failed with a late bid to the sign the striker last summer but were confident of securing his services on a free transfer this summer, and were willing to offer a signing-on fee and weekly wages which would have made Mbappe the highest-paid footballer in the world.
But PSG submitted a similarly eye-watering offer and Mbappe ultimately put pen to paper over the weekend, committing his future to the club who paid just under 200million euros to AS Monaco for his services in 2018 until 2025.
Despite seemingly burning his bridges with Los Blancos, with France international team-mate Karim Benzema voicing his displeasure with Mbappe’s decision on Instagram, Mbappe insists he could still move to the Spanish capital in future.
‘[The chance of moving to Real Madrid is] never over, never over,’ Mbappe told the  ‘The only thing is that now I have signed a contract for three years more. You never know what can happen in the future. I give up to think about the future, I only think about the present and the present is I signed a new contract for three years more at Paris Saint-Germain.
‘I spoke to the president of because I have a lot of respect for him and the club. I think it was important to say it personally that I wasn’t going to go. To be a great player [you have] to be honest and everything was great and good because we have a good relationship.’
Ultimately, Mbappe cites his commitment to his nation as the reason he decided to remain with PSG.
‘Leaving my country isn’t the right thing,’ he said. ‘There is a sentimental aspect to this. It is my country. The ongoing project has changed as well. That has made me want to stay here because I don’t think my story is over yet. That goes for me collectively and individually. I think there are many more wonderful chapters to write.’
Sporting director Leonardo was sacked by PSG chairman Nassar Al-Khelaifi after the final day victory over Metz on Saturday evening, while manager Mauricio Pochettino’s future remains uncertain.
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