Sunday, December 22, 2024

Mbappé: People at PSG made me ‘unhappy’

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Kylian Mbappé said certain people at Paris Saint-Germain made him “unhappy” in his first news conference since completing his move to Real Madrid.

Mbappé officially joined Madrid on a free transfer on Monday to bring the protracted saga to an end.

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“I wasn’t unhappy at PSG, that would be a slap in the face of the people who defended me — I have always been happy,” Mbappé said at the news conference with the France national team on Tuesday.

“But certain things made me unhappy, but a player like me couldn’t show that because I am a leader, so I tried to be as positive as possible. The coach, the players and the employees of the club supported me, and it would be bad form to come and moan and say that I was unhappy. But certain things and people made me unhappy.”

Mbappé was involved in a row last summer with PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi over whether or not he would extend his contract beyond the end of the season.

The 25-year-old added that the Parisian club told him that he wouldn’t play at all in the season that has just concluded until he was “saved” by the club’s manager Luis Enrique and sporting director Luis Campos.

Mbappé said: “They [the club] made me understand that I wouldn’t play, they told me to my face, they told me violently.

“Luis Enrique and Luis Campos saved me. I wouldn’t have set foot on the pitch again without them.

“Just the fact I was playing was a great source of pride, but it’s certain that next year I won’t be satisfied with a year like that.”

Mbappé and France take on Luxembourg on Wednesday before facing Canada in their final warmup for Euro 2024.

Their group includes Austria, the Netherlands and Poland.

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