Returning to practice with the first team after a short ban is the latest evidence of Kylian Mbappe’s power over both PSG, the transfer market and Ligue 1.
“Mbappe not only makes the two most powerful clubs in the world dance to his rhythm, but also has an incredible degree of control over the entire transfer market,” commented Goal after the event. Mbappe returned to practice with the PSG first team on August 13.
Unlike all members of PSG and fans, Mbappe was comfortable when he attended the opening match of Ligue 1 against Lorient on August 12. Sitting in the middle of the crowd at Parc des Princes frustrated because PSG struggled to find a way to score against the opponent who finished 10th last season, the French striker constantly laughed and joked with fellow rookie Ousmane Dembele. The development and the 0-0 draw of the match further showed his importance to PSG.
In the pre-match press conference, new coach Luis Enrique expressed his hope that Mbappe and the leadership team would find a positive solution to help PSG prepare the best for the new season. But the Spanish coach did not forget to emphasize: “The philosophy of the club is very clear, that the club comes first and I support that.”
That philosophy is also repeated by the PSG leadership many times, but simply cannot be applied to Mbappe’s case. The developments in the summer transfer window of 2023 have proven that the 24-year-old superstar has a bigger position than PSG. In fact, right now the French striker is probably the most powerful player in the world.
Being held to a 0-0 draw by Lorient in the first main game of the new season as a light warning to PSG about the scary future without Mbappe. And right after this match, the Parc des Princes team announced that the 2018 World Cup champion was welcome back to the first team.
This is an unexpected move, in contrast to the previous strong stance of the owner of the Parc des Princes. Since Mbappe’s letter to the board announcing his decision not to activate the option to extend for another year – until the summer of 2025 – was leaked, president Nasser Al-Khelaifi affirmed that the 24-year-old striker must find a place to stop. new before the transfer window closes. PSG have no intention of losing the world’s most valuable player on a free transfer in the summer of 2024.
Relations between the two sides became strained, seemingly irreparable. PSG removed Mbappe posters in and around the Parc des Princes and stopped selling his jerseys in club stores. PSG also sent a letter to Mbappe, stating the consequences if he leaves as a free agent in the summer of 2024, such as the club will have to sell key players, review the policy of promoting young players to the first team and very may have to start a wave of layoffs to balance the finances…
PSG also accepted a record price of $ 330 million and allowed Al Hilal to negotiate with Mbappe. But the French striker ignored the salary of $ 775 million from the Saudi Arabian club. Mbappe knows he holds all the aces and all the advantages on the transfer floor – with only one year left on his contract and also receiving the highest salary in Europe. He is a young talent from a generation that is deeply aware of his worth, especially with PSG.
Al-Khelaifi gives power and makes Mbappe “the cornerstone of the club’s project” when signing a new contract in the summer of 2022 for a reason. PSG is completely dependent on Mbappe, but not from a sporting perspective. They can still replace the goals of the French striker, as former PSG Sports Director Leonardo pointed out that there are five Champions League winners – including Real Madrid (2018, 2022), Liverpool (2019), Bayern (2020). ), Chelsea (2021) and Man City (2023) during Mbappe’s six seasons with the French team. “That means PSG can still win the Champions League without Mbappe,” Leonardo insisted.
But Qatar’s owners do not think that PSG – which is already in an almost exclusive position in France – can resonate on a global scale without a star of Mbappe’s stature – who has a young and large fan base in the world. any platform – in the near future.
With Lionel Messi and Neymar both leaving this summer, Mbappe is the only icon left and the most important symbol for the PSG brand. Technically, if Mbappe sells, the French team will have a lot more money to build a stronger, cohesive, uniform team that works more effectively to realize the dream of winning the continental championship. But without Mbappe, PSG would no longer be an attractive proposition in terms of marketing and commercial opportunities, or even just in terms of attracting followers on social media.
“Mbappe and his team understand this well, and that’s why they can just sit back and wait for the move from PSG,” Goal commented.
Not only PSG, Mbappe also affects the transfer of Real. He was close to landing at the Bernabeu on a free form last summer, but “flipped” to renew with PSG near the end of the 2021-2022 season. President Florentino Perez does not hide his anger , but clearly still wants to sign Mbappe, and is willing to wait more to do so.
But again, it’s up to Mbappe to decide whether he moves to Madrid and when that deal will happen. After resolving the conflict by returning to training with the first team, Mbappe could extend with PSG, but that will only happen on terms in favor of the French striker. According to Le Parisien , if he continues to sign with PSG, the 24-year-old striker will set the termination fee in the summer of 2024 at a level that he knows Real is ready to meet.
The current situation shows that Mbappe is in control of not only his own career, but also the transfer market – something that has never been seen before. Cristiano Ronaldo went to Saudi Arabia to wear Al Nassr shirt because he did not receive a worthy offer in Europe. Lionel Messi was forced to leave Barca and could not return to Camp Nou this summer due to financial problems. In contrast, Mbappe is free to decide what is best for himself.
If Mbappe stays at PSG, Real will have to sign another striker this summer, or wait for him for another year, accept to play in the 2023-2024 season without a top-class striker, after parting with captain Karim Benzema. If Mbappe leaves PSG, the French team will have to find a worthy replacement. Regardless of the scenario, Mbappe will still be a potential catalyst for a chain of transfer dominoes in the striker position of big clubs.
But with Mbappe, as he has shown more than once, the current priority is just waiting to see what else PSG are willing to offer, both in terms of money and ambition to conquer, if they invite him to sign a new contract. This summer, the Paris Capital club replaced Neymar – who was said to be in conflict with the French striker – with Ousmane Dembele – Mbappe’s compatriot and close friend. From now until the summer market closes on September 1, PSG may still strengthen its forces to please Mbappe.
According to the Spanish newspaper AS, the fact that PSG went to the water with Mbappe also came from close interests and efforts to intervene from the Ligue 1 organizers. From September, the number one French football league will negotiate a new television rights contract. According to Head of Organizing Committee Vincent Labrune, Ligue 1 aims to earn about $ 1.1 billion in the next four years. This number in the contract that is about to expire is less than 700 million.
After Messi, Sergio Ramos, and Neymar left in the same summer, Mbappe was the only lifeline left for the tournament in terms of television appeal. If the French superstar leaves, it will be difficult for Ligue 1 to convince partners to pay $ 1.1 billion as desired. And then, PSG’s financial benefit from the tournament’s copyright package will also be significantly less.
The fact that PSG gave in to Mbappe to return to practice with the first team received a very positive response from investors. Last weekend, Canal+ – the company that holds the rights to two matches per round of Ligue 1 – announced a partnership with online TV platform DAZN. Under this agreement, DAZN is willing to invest a huge amount in French football to compete with another bidding partner – the giant Amazon Prime.
Ligue 1 currently drops to sixth in the ranking of Europe’s top leagues, behind the top four – including the English Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, and the Dutch Championship. According to AS , the potential $1.1 billion from the new TV rights contract will act as a hinge for French clubs to strengthen their forces, for the goal of breaking into the top four continental championships, thereby winning the championship. more Champions League spots than the current three. And to do that, Ligue 1 and PSG must keep up with Mbappe.