The star Kylian Mbappe posed with a smile to take selfies with the young fans of Paris Saint-Germain, the French football champion, after he went to a training session with the reserve team, according to what an AFP journalist witnessed, 24 hours after he was excluded from the pre-season tour.
The decision of Mbappe’s absence from the Asian tour came amid talk of a difference of opinion with the club’s management regarding his contract, which expires in the summer of 2024, as speculation returned about his transfer to Real Madrid, Spain.
Mbappe, the 2018 World Cup champion and runner-up in the 2022 World Cup, in which he was crowned top scorer, is still the focus of attention due to the ambiguity about his future, as his contract expires next June, which means that he will then become a free player to move to any other club for free.
But the Parisian club will not accept his departure for free and asked him to sign a new contract or agree to sell him this summer.
And the president of the Qatari club, Nasser Al-Khulaifi, revealed during the presentation of the new Spanish coach, Luis Enrique, at the beginning of the month, “Killian cannot leave for free,” setting July 31 as the deadline for making the decision.
Less than 24 hours after it was announced that the team would travel to Asia in his absence, Mbappe trained with the reserve team at the training center in Poissy, on the outskirts of Paris.
Then, the black minibus he was riding in stopped outside the entrance to the center where a crowd of fans had gathered and he exited, escorted by a bodyguard.
A relaxed Mbappe signed pictures and T-shirts, which were carried by fans, and one was heard saying “Kylian stay with us” on AFP’s live broadcast channel APTV.
Paris Saint-Germain has not yet commented on the exclusion of its star and captain of the French national team from the tour, while reports indicated that the player may be punished by remaining on the bench next season if his contract is not renewed.
