08 July 2023 , 23:58
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Six PSG players have complained to the club's president Nasser Al-Khelaifi following comments made by Kylian Mbappe.
The Frenchman, who is involved in a transfer saga with the French side, claimed that the Ligue 1 champions were a “divisive club” which tends to “attract gossip”. Mbappe, who has been at PSG since 2017, also suggested they had perhaps reached their "glass ceiling".
His comments, which came via L'Equipe, also saw him state that playing for PSG “does not help” certain comments about his performance. Several of his team-mates, including two new signings, have taken issue with Mbappe and made their feelings known to the hierarchy, according to the Athletic.
The World Cup star has been unable to deliver the Champions League at PSG - the one trophy the club wants most. Mbappe has claimed their consistent failures on the European stage needed to be answered by those “who build the team” in a subtle dig at the hierarchy at the Parc des Princes.
Mbappe has opted against signing the one-year extension in his contract meaning he will be a free agent in 12 months time. Real Madrid are seen as his most likely destination but PSG are adamant the 24-year-old will not be allowed to leave for nothing.
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Al-Khelaifi said: "We want him to stay but he can't leave for free. There was a verbal agreement and he had discussed it in an interview. And I was really shocked to learn that he had decided to leave for free. It's very disappointing because Mbappe is a fantastic boy, a real gentleman and to leave for free, weakening the biggest club in France, it's not him. When I heard the news, I was shocked and disappointed."
PSG have begun their recruitment drive, adding Marco Asensio and Milan Skriniar on free transfers as well as Manuel Ugarte from Sporting Lisbon. Al-Khelaifi though has warned, despite PSG's riches, that Mbappe will have to see his team-mates sold if he does not secure an exit this summer as they prepare to cut their losses.
He said: "It's for him to decide for himself next week, or at most in the next two weeks. And if he does not want to sign a new contract, the door is open. It's like that for him and everyone else. Nobody is bigger than the club, no player, not even me. It's very clear. By the standards of football, you never see your best player leave for free. It just doesn't happen.
"We don't want to let the best player in the world go for free, it's impossible. PSG is a French club, it's his city, and he's already said he doesn't want to leave for free. If today someone made him change his mind, it's not my fault."