Paris Saint-Germain are expected to lose their most prized asset, Kylian Mbappe, at the end of the season with the expiry of his contract at the club, leaving them without a superstar within its attacking rankings for the first time since the Qataris took over the club. Without arguably the best player in the world and still on their quest to become serial winners of the UEFA Champions League, Soccer Laduma international football writer Kamogelo Motecwane looks at how the French giants could achieve their desired success in a post-Mbappe era.
Mbappe mesmerised by Madrid
As the France captain runs down the remaining months on his current deal at the Parc des Princes, it almost seems a mere formality that he will ditch the French capital for Spain’s equivalent, with Real Madrid looking his likeliest destination. There has been a mutual interest from both parties for some years now, but it now looks as though their union will finally be formalised, and that Mbappe will become a Galactico. It is unfortunate for Les Parisiens, who will lose not only one of the best players in the world, but a footballer French people can resonate with as he is a fellow Frenchman performing at the highest level for the best team in their country. In his seven years playing for the record Ligue 1 champions, Mbappe has gone on to become the club’s all-time top goalscorer, lifting 13 domestic honours in the process. When they acquired his services from AS Monaco, however, the prevailing school of thought was that he, along with Neymar, would help the club fulfil their foremost ambition of winning the UEFA Champions League. That has not gone according to plan as the Parisian juggernaut is still without European football’s biggest piece of silverware. The 25-year-old is also still without a Ballon d’Or to his name, but with his contract expiring and him bound for the PSG exit door, it seems the forward fancies his chances of winning both the aforementioned titles with Los Blancos.
