PSG Axes Mbappé From Tour, May Never Play Him Again – Source

Julien Laurens, Correspondent July 21, 2023, 6:08 p.m. ET

Kylian Mbappé has been kicked out of Paris Saint-Germain squad that will travel to Japan on Saturday for their pre-season tour and sources have told ESPN that the French champions are considering never playing their star forward again.

Mbappé, 24, has only one year remaining on his contract and has told the club he intends to terminate his contract and leave as a free agent in the summer of 2024.

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PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi previously said Mbappé would need to sign a new contract this summer to stay at the club and they are now executing that tough stance.

Sources have told ESPN that Mbappé, who was alerted to the news on Friday after scoring in the 2-0 friendly win over Le Havre, was surprised by the move but has accepted it.

However, Friday’s developments were a further escalation in the difficult relationship between the French club and their marquee player and are likely to deepen the crisis between the two sides.

“Players who don’t want to be here, the door is open,” Al-Khelaifi told the squad on Tuesday without naming the French players who were present in the room.

However, Mbappé is not going to change his mind and sign a new contract. He repeated that attitude once again to the club earlier this week, which further angered Al-Khelaifi and their Qatari owners and likely led to the decision to drop him from the touring squad.

Mbappé, who has finished as Ligue 1’s top scorer in the last five seasons, sent a letter to PSG last month stating that he had no intention of extending his contract.

But he later clarified that he had not asked the French club to allow him a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid, who in the past have tried and failed to land the France international.

ESPN reports that the LaLiga giants have it all when they get the green light from either Mbappé or PSG. They realized the deal would exceed €200 million considering fees, add-ons and commissions.

Madrid are the only club looking to join Mbappé this summer, sources have told ESPN, and they are the only team that can realistically afford him.

According to ESPN sources, there has been no contact between the two clubs but Madrid have been in talks with Mbappé’s entourage for some time.

If Mbappé runs out of contract, PSG will be unable to recoup the €180 million ($197 million) they paid to sign him from AS Monaco in 2017.