Mbappe takes dig at Galtier over PSG role
FT Desk
- 9 Oct 2022 09:51 BST
- 5 min read
Kylian Mbappe signed a bumper new deal with PSG in May, spurning Real Madrid, but he already seems to be unhappy with the role he is being asked to play by Christophe Galtier.
Real were readying Mbappe's presentation at the Bernabeu when Mbappe made his about-turn, signing a three-year deal at PSG which earned him €50 million per season and was meant to give him an unprecedented say in the running of the club.
But head coach Galtier has arrived from Lille - with whom he won Ligue 1 at PSG's expense in 2021 - and has instituted a 3-4-2-1 formation which had seemingly got the best out of each member of 'MNM': Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi.
'PivotGang'
Mbappe has scored 11 goals in 12 games in all competitions leading the line in front of the other two, but he drew a blank as the French champions were held to a goalless draw at Reims on Saturday, and took to social media to express his discontent.
Mbappe posted a picture of himself on Instagram with the hashtag #pivotgang, which may seem harmless on initial inspection but actually speak to a wider frustration Mbappe has with his role at PSG.
PSG failed to sign a striker in the summer, indeed they lost a classic No.9 in allowing Mauro Icardi to leave on loan for Galatasaray, and Mbappe has been playing right-up front, the leader of the "pivot gang," something he is unhappy about.
Used on the left with France with central striker like Karim Benzema or Olivier Giroud for company, Mbappe expanded upon his recent club irritation when on international duty with the world champions recently.
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"I play differently, they ask other things of me here than at my club," he said. "I have a lot more freedom here. The coach knows that there's a No.9 like Olivier, who keeps defences occupied.
"Me, I can walk around, get into space, ask for through balls. In Paris, it's different not having that. I'm asked to be a pivot which is different."
