Outcast Kylian Mbappe 'reinstated' by PSG as Real Madrid transfer rumours linger
Mbappe looks set to stay with PSG for at least one more season, after the latest summer of drama surrounding his future
PSG have begun the process of reintegrating Kylian Mbappe into the first-team squad, having effectively exiled the superstar amid doubts over his future.
The Ligue 1 champions were convinced that Mbappe would join Real Madrid on a free transfer next summer and had been scrambling to sell the 24-year-old.
Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal tabled a world-record bid of €300m, while there were also murmurs of loan interest from Liverpool.
But France's 2018 World Cup-winning frontman now looks set to stay at PSG for at least another season – 12 months after an extraordinary intervention from French president Emmanuel Macron stopped him from moving to Real.
Mbappe had been made to train with PSG's so-called 'undesirables' – a group of players not considered part of the first-team plans – and was left out of Saturday's Ligue 1 opener, a 0-0 draw at home to Lorient.
There has, though, been positive progress between the two parties, culminating in the following statement from PSG on Sunday morning:
"Following very constructive and positive discussions between Paris St-Germain and Kylian Mbappe before the PSG – Lorient game, the player has been reinstated into the first-team training squad this morning."
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It appears that Mbappe has done performed something of a U-turn, with the former Monaco forward said likely to agree to extend his contract beyond next summer after all.
He could well still depart then – in fact, it seems likely given his well-known dream of playing for Real Madrid – but PSG would be able to generate a transfer fee for the player they bought for €180m.
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Tom Hancock started freelancing for FourFourTwo in April 2019 and has also written for the Premier League and Opta Analyst, among others. He supports Wycombe Wanderers and has a soft spot for Wealdstone. A self-confessed statto, he has been known to watch football with a spreadsheet (or several) open...