Samir Nasri has urged Kylian Mbappe to stay at PSG.
Former Arsenal and Manchester City midfielder Samir Nasri has urged Real Madrid target Kylian Mbappe to stay at Paris Saint-Germain.
Madrid are interested in signing Mbappe when he becomes a free agent at the end of the season.
In the summer, the France captain revealed he is not triggering the one-year extension in his PSG contract, meaning his current deal will run out in 2024.
The Ligue 1 champions then put Mbappe up for sale but the only club to make a bid was Saudi Pro League outfit Al-Hilal.
Despite the fact PSG probably would have accepted a bid worth around £125million, given the player’s contract situation, Al-Hilal had a mammoth £250m offer accepted.
Mbappe did not even want to negotiate a contract with the Saudi Arabian club, though, despite the fact they were reportedly willing to offer a one-year deal so the 24-year-old could join Real Madrid on a free transfer at the end of the season.
He could have signed the most expensive contract in football history but the French forward wanted to stay at PSG for the entire 2023/24 campaign.
Signing a contract extension in Paris is not completely off the table, it has been reported.
Everyone and their dog expected Mbappe to join Madrid on a free transfer in 2022 but the Frenchman left Los Blancos president Florentino Perez with egg on his face when he decided to extend his stay at PSG. So, yeah, it is definitely not off the table.
Speaking over the weekend, ex-France playmaker Nasri urged Mbappe – who is the fourth-top scorer across Europe in 2023 – to snub a move to the Spanish capital, where he would probably win Madrid’s “50th Champions League”.
“Yes, even in world football. If he leaves, it will leave a hole, but with the budget, they will be able to recruit other players – who will not be Mbappe, that is clear,” Nasri told JDD via Le10Sport.
“But today, he has such importance, whether in the French team or with his club.
“Already two years ago, I said he was the best player in the world. I still think so.
“He is from the Paris region: I, in his place, I would stay at PSG, instead of going to Madrid, to win the 50th Champions League for Real.
“If Marseille had been owned by Qatar when I was at the club, I would never have left.
“I think it is better to be the king in your village.”
Last week, Real Madrid were forced to release a statement insisting they have not already opened talks to sign Mbappe at the end of 23/24.
The statement read: “Given the information recently issued and published by different media outlets, in which there is speculation about alleged negotiations between the player Kylian Mbappe and our club, Real Madrid CF would like to state that this information is completely false and that no such negotiations have taken place with a player who belongs to PSG.”
Should Madrid fail to convince Mbappe to join, they will turn their attention to Bayern Munich playmaker Jamal Musiala, according to German outlet Bild.
Musiala has also been strongly linked with a move to Liverpool with Mohamed Salah attracting interest from Saudi Arabian side Al-Ittihad.
