Real Madrid have reportedly been desperate to keep all of their Kylian Mbappe movements behind the scenes until the summer this time round, but after avoiding the media all season, the French forward broke his silence on Wednesday night. It was not what Los Blancos wanted to hear either.
Mbappe told the French press that ‘all parties are protected’ regardless of what happens with his future, while also admitting that his decision had not been made yet. Real Madrid have reportedly given Mbappe a deadline of mid-January by which he must respond to them.
On El Chiringuito later that night, as captured by Diario AS, Josep Pedrerol said that Mbappe’s words had not been well-received at the Santiago Bernabeu.
“Real Madrid are not amused by Mbappe’s words. They do not want to get into a season-long drama, and it appears Mbappe does,” said Pedrerol.
The French forward is available on a free, and thus far, he has conducted business on his own terms over the past few years. Real Madrid have been keen to invert that power dynamic, but will have to do so on the presumption that they are the option he wants above all others, otherwise their only other options will be to pull out of a deal, or play the game on Mbappe’s terms.