'Mbappe wants to leave,' PSG confirm amid Real Madrid interest

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 25 Aug 2021 08:36 CDT
• 4 min read

Kylian Mbappe wants to leave Paris Saint-Germain, sporting director Leonardo has confirmed, but he has hit out at Real Madrid for acting "illegally".

Leonardo confirmed that Madrid had made an offer for the striker, confirming that the offer was around the €160 million mark previously reported and that it has been rejected.

He also launched an attack on Real Madrid and pledged that PSG will not "allow anyone to destroy" their dream.

"Kylian Mbappe wants to leave, that seems clear to me," he told RMC. "If Real Madrid make an offer, I give a position, which I think is clear to everyone.

"We cannot change our plans in the last week in the transfer window.

"If he wants to leave, we won't hold him back, but it's on our terms.

"Our goal is to give him a contract extension and to keep him. That's always been our goal and it still is."

PSG make Mbappe demands clear

Leonardo did not close the door on Mbappe departing the club, but he did warn that the €160m offered by Madrid does not come close to PSG's asking price.

"We're not holding anyone back. If someone wants to leave and our conditions are met, we'll see," he said.

"We created a dream with our players this summer and we won't let anyone destroy it.

"We consider the offer very far from what Kylian is worth today. We will also have to give some of the money to Monaco, so we believe that the proposal is not sufficient.

"I'm not going to confirm the numbers, but it was around what was reported. It was less than we paid for him. But it's overall the manner that Real Madrid did it that does not please us."

Leonardo hits out at 'incorrect' Real Madrid'

Indeed, Leonardo believes that the Spanish club have acted outside the bounds of the law as they have chased Mbappe.

"It's been two years that Real Madrid have carried on like this, it's incorrect, illegal even because they contacted the player," he said.

"This is the very proof of their strategy: an offer arrives one year from the end of his contract and a week before the end of the transfer window. They want us to refuse to show Kylian that they've tried everything and will start negotiating for next year.

"We've no plans to talk to Real Madrid again. The deadline is 31 August at midnight. We're clear about the transfer window: we'll keep him and we'll extend his contract. But we're not going to let him go for less than we paid when we still owe Monaco money.

"We've never thought of a Plan B. We've created a positive atmosphere and we won't let anyone change that."

Mbappe, meanwhile, has given his word to PSG's leadership that he will not depart for free.

"We've spoken to Kylian, we've spoken a lot, and he's always told us the same things. Kylian has always promised that he will not leave the club for free," he said.

The Mbappe saga has been a stain on PSG's summer transfer window, in which they have signed players such as Lionel Messi, Sergio Ramos and Gianluigi Donnarumma.