(Paris) Before his departure this summer, Kylian Mbappé will play his last match with Paris SG on Saturday in the Coupe de France final against Lyon, with the imperative of offering another face after weeks of average performances and tensions with the club.
The player is indeed present in the group announced by PSG on Friday, despite two very notable absences for the last two matches of a long-won Ligue 1, against Nice and Metz. They had fueled speculation, but turned out to be permission granted by coach Luis Enrique to several players.
Taking advantage of a sunny day in Cannes last Sunday, an escapade immortalized on social networks, Kylian Mbappé tried to leave behind the fog of controversies and the grayness of elimination in the Champions League in the semi-final against Dortmund at the start may.
His goal for his last match at the Parc des Princes against Toulouse, on May 12, was spoiled by the defeat (3-1), which also tinged the presentation of the French champion trophy with bitterness.
Saturday at the Pierre-Mauroy stadium in Villeneuve-d’Ascq, his objective is to score his last goals and, this time, to have the last word.
PHOTO FRANCK FIFE, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE ARCHIVES
Kylian Mbappé
He will have had the last word on the contractual level with his club, which he will leave this summer for Real Madrid. A long standoff pitted him against PSG and tensions built up with President Nasser Al-Khelaïfi.
According to Le Parisien, two days after the official announcement of his departure via video, a violent argument with the Qatari broke out in the locker room during the match against Toulouse, notably over stories of big money.
And emotion?
It remains to be seen when his arrival at Real Madrid will be announced. It is the “White House” which decides and, according to the Madrid press, there is no question of talking about Mbappé before the Champions League final against Dortmund, on 1er June. Kylian Mbappé will have to join the France team for the Euro before June 3, which leaves a relatively narrow window.
The disproportionate Mbappé file parasitized the second half of the Parisian season. Luis Enrique worked to uphold the institution and his own authority by placing the superstar on the bench from the start or during the match, decisions unprecedented in seven seasons.
And the emotion in all this? The top scorer in the club’s history, holder of countless records, himself told the fans in his video: “I know I’m not the most demonstrative player, I haven’t always been worthy of the love you gave me for seven years.”
His farewell to the public largely took place on May 12 when the ultras deployed a tifo in his image. The whistles that also emerged from part of the stands showed the controversial legacy left by the star.
While Mbappé multiplies promotional operations for his foundation before leaving Paris, a small part of the mark he will leave will be played out on Saturday, on the field. “I hope we will end this year with one last trophy,” he said.