Will Mbappe announce his PSG exit at Sunday night’s UNFP gala?
The Ligue 1 season is almost over and it’s time for prizes to be given out, with the Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels (UNFP) gala taking place this Sunday evening. There, Kylian Mbappe is expected to win the Ligue 1 Player of the Season award and there is a chance that he could use that opportunity to reveal his future plans, announcing whether he’ll renew with PSG or leave for Real Madrid.
There won’t be many other PSG representatives at the gala, since the capital city club have travelled to Qatar this Sunday for a promotional event. But, Mbappe has been given permission to stay behind and attend the prizegiving.
According to Diario AS, the fact that the forward will be speaking without the PSG hierarchy present is causing concern at the club. There are fears that the 23-year-old will announce his departure while all of the club’s other big names are in Qatar, which would be a major embarrassment for Nasser Al-Khelaifi and co.
Another reason why there is a belief that Mbappe could drop a bombshell is the fact that he previously did so at the 2019 UNFP gala. Back then, he raised eyebrows when stating: “I think I'm reaching the first or second turning point in my career. Maybe it's time to have more responsibility, which could be at PSG with great pleasure or maybe somewhere else with a new project."
L’Equipe report that Mbappe’s announcement will come later
Although there is a possibility that Mbappe could announce his future plans this Sunday night, L’Equipe have reported that this won’t be the case. The French newspaper has explained that he’ll wait until a later date to reveal his decision.
(🌕) Mbappé will not say anything and there will be no definitive statements regarding his future this evening when he attends the UNFP awards. @lequipe #Transfers 🇫🇷🚨
— Los Blancos Live (@LosBlancos_Live) May 15, 2022
Mbappe has been clear about wanting to wait until the end of the season to publicly state his intentions, and there is just one more game remaining for PSG this term. They’ll play at home to Metz on Saturday May 21st in the final matchday of the 2021/22 Ligue 1 campaign, which could be Mbappe’s final appearance for the club. Despite some reports that he’ll be suspended for that game, this is not the case and he will be able to take to the Parc des Princes pitch.