On August 14, 2021, Paris Saint-Germain will host their first match of the season at the Parc des Princes, against Strasbourg. The air is heavy and dry in the middle of summer in the capital, and the Parisian supporters gathered around the stadium are getting impatient. Since the start of the health crisis linked to Covid-19, the organizers have lost their bearings and are no longer used to welcoming so many people in the stands.
The 48,000 PSG supporters who came to the Parc on August 14 came there for one reason: to cheer on the club’s new recruits, Lionel Messi, Sergio Ramos, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi and Georginio Wijnaldum, presented to the public. However, it is another event that will mark the evening: the whistles reserved for Kylian Mbappé during the warm-up and the announcement of the team compositions.
The recruits of the #TeamPSG presented at the Parc des Princes#PSGRCS #UCL pic.twitter.com/2bjJ8LiWs1
— UEFA (@UEFAcom_fr) August 14, 2021
Football France has not yet fully digested the missed shot on goal by the Parisian in the round of 16 of the Euro against Switzerland, but it is for another reason that the supporters of PSG then attack to their star: under contract until June 30, 2022, Mbappé has not yet extended. Worse, the first rumors point to an imminent approach by Real Madrid to recruit him before the end of the summer transfer window.
Finally, the Madrid offensive will take place a week later and despite Mbappé’s desire to join Real, which he announced to the management of PSG, the capital club does not flinch. The striker must stay at PSG. And suffer the whistles, which will last several more weeks. Saturday May 21, everything seems forgotten and PSG supporters were happy to learn of Mbappé’s extension with Paris until 2025.
Not everything has been easy, therefore, in the relationship between Mbappé and the fans of the capital club this year. The latter reproached the French international at the start of the season for not being sufficiently involved in the project. What Mbappé refutes. During an interview at The Team mid-October, the PSG striker assumes that he wanted to leave the club to sign for Real Madrid. But also wants to clarify things.
“I stayed and I’m really happy. At no point in the season will you see behavior like: ‘You didn’t let me go, I’m going to slow down’. I love football too much and I have too much respect for the club, and for myself, to ease off on even one match.“, he explains. Involved, Mbappé is, and makes a more than correct start to the season. However, the boos will continue for several weeks, especially during a match against Clermont at the Parc in September.
Mauricio Pochettino, the PSG coach, then steps up to defend his player: “He loves this club terribly, he has shown it since his arrival, he continues to show it this season. He is focused on improving on a daily basis to help the team achieve their goals this season. Every day, Kylian shows enormous respect for this club. And that must be taken into account.“Quickly, Mbappé turns a corner in his game and manages to turn popular opinion towards him.
The question of his contract is obviously not settled and everything seems to be leaning towards a free start for Real Madrid during the 2022 summer transfer window. Despite everything, Mbappé has proven his involvement throughout the season and the supporters pay him back. . To the point that the latter unveiled a banner on February 26, during a Ligue 1 match against Saint-Étienne, to try to convince Mbappé to extend: “From Bondy to Paris, your story is written here!” “It touches me deeply“, reacts the attacker.
What will completely rehabilitate the native of Bondy in the eyes of Parisian supporters are the disappointing results of the club. A few days after the improbable elimination of PSG on the lawn of Real Madrid in the round of 16 second leg of the Champions League, the Parc des Princes reserves an icy welcome to Parisian players during a match against Bordeaux. All are targeted, except one: Kylian Mbappé.
| “From Bondy to Paris, Kylian your story is written here!
The message of @Co_Ultras_Paris for Kylian Mbappe #PSGASSE pic.twitter.com/6x7S0v86eE
— Canal Supporters (@CanalSupporters) February 26, 2022
“Mbappé in Paris, Leonardo (sporting director of PSG) in the pillory“, we can see on a banner in the stands of the Park. The message is clear. By contrast with the neutral performances of Messi, the umpteenth injury of Neymar, the disappointments represented by rookies Sergio Ramos and the new misadventures of PSG in the Champions League, Mbappé appears as the beacon in the middle of the storm.
Unstoppable, author of 39 goals and 26 assists in all competitions this season in 46 games, Mbappé is once again unanimous. The 23-year-old striker has even taken a step forward. He has become the undisputed leader of the Paris squad. The one who can offer the first Champions League in the history of Paris. But the question of his contract remains. So, the Parisian supporters cheer him at the end of the season, with the impression of attending the star’s last matches at PSG.
In recent days, while Mbappé had announced that he wanted to reveal the identity of his future club before May 28, pessimism reigned among fans of the Parisian club. “I think it’s over, since the UNFP trophies night, where his speech sounded like a farewell, I’m absolutely devastated“, regretted a few days ago Jonathan Partula, subscriber to the Parc des Princes for fifteen years, with AFP. On Saturday, fatalism gave way to joy. Mbappé at PSG, here we go again.