Paris Saint-Germain striker Kylian Mbappe has done little to dampen growing speculation over his future after reportedly hinting at a move to Real Madrid in the off-season.
The 22-year-old France international has emerged as one of football’s hottest properties over the past couple of years, prompting Real Madrid to launch a last-minute bid to acquire his services on transfer deadline day.
According to Sky Sports, Los Blancos lodged an eye-watering bid in excess of €220million, which was not acknowledged by the Ligue 1 outfit.
And, with Mbappe set to enter the final six months of his current contract in January, he will be free to negotiate a free transfer at the end of the current campaign.
The Frenchman was in attendance in Paris on Monday as PSG team-mate Lionel Messi claimed a record seventh Ballon D’Or, and he was subsequently asked by reporters about his personal targets in relation to the famed prize.
“Of course my goal is to win a Ballon d’Or title or several of them, but there is a process to achieve it,” said Mbappe.
His cryptic reference to the “process” required to win the Ballon d’Or has been labelled as a hint to an impending switch to Real Madrid.
It has been suggested that Mbappe sees a move to Real Madrid as his best chance of claiming the Ballon D’Or as he would not be playing in the shadow of Messi or Neymar.
Former France international Emmanuel Petit has suggested as much, saying that for him, Mbappe is the star of the team, not Messi or Neymar.
“I think he’s been frustrated and tired by the situation at PSG over the past year,” said Petit, as quoted by The Mirror.
“We’ve seen some trouble on the pitch between players both at Paris Saint-Germain and the national team, which was reflective in his game and his mood.
“Maybe he’s interested in Real Madrid because he’s tired of what’s happening here in France. I think he gets the feeling sometimes that he doesn’t get the same recognition as players like [Lionel] Messi or Neymar.
“Messi, before he came here, he was the king of Barcelona. But for me, the king of Paris Saint-Germain is Mbappe, not Messi or Neymar. With all the respect I have for Messi, Mbappe is still number one.”