Kylian Mbappe has closed the door on a move to Arsenal (Image: Getty Images)
Kylian Mbappe has shut down any speculation about him joining Arsenal in brutal fashion.
The French superstar told Paris Saint-Germain he will be leaving once his contract expires this summer. It marks the end of a seven-year spell with the Ligue 1 champions despite the Qatari-owned side’s best efforts to keep him.
That has led to plenty of talk about which club the 25-year-old will join at the end of this season, with reports suggesting he will pick his boyhood club Real Madrid. He is expected to rake in £13million-a-year in the Spanish capital, where he hopes to finally win his first Ballon d’Or.
But Mbappe has also been linked with Premier League high-flyers Arsenal over the past month. The Independent reported last month that the World Cup-winning forward is “willing” to join the north Londoners.
The report led to talk of Mbappe potentially following in his hero Thierry Henry’s footsteps by signing for the Gunners, with both players being born in the Paris region, concluding their training in Monaco’s academy and earning big-money moves elsewhere.
But the forward has now brutally squashed any hope of that coming into fruition after being asked by a young fan if he could be Arsenal’s next big star. In a viral video shared on social media, the fan could be heard saying: “Come to Arsenal!”
A young Arsenal fan tried to get Mbappe to make the move to the Emirates
The Frenchman laughed off the request politely along with a stern no
Mbappe, who had his arm around the youngster’s shoulders, brushed off the request by laughing – to which the fan pleaded: “We’ll look after you.”
Still smiling, Mbappe was not having any of it, replying: “There’s no way, there’s no way.” And to completely bury any talk of him playing under Mikel Arteta for good, he added: “It’s too cold there.”
Mbappe is expected to join Real Madrid this summer (Image: Icon Sport via Getty Images)
It comes after Arteta fuelled the rumours last month by saying: “When there is a player of that calibre we always have to be in the conversation. Why not? If we want to be the best team, we are going to need the best talent and the best players, that is for sure.”
Arsenal are currently leading the Premier League on goal difference while Real Madrid lead La Liga by 10 points. Both teams are still in the Champions League and will meet in the final four if they win their respective quarter-final ties.