The minutiae of Kylian Mbappe’s future are once again a carefully orchestrated drama this summer, keeping the Frenchman at the top of the headlines.
After Paris Saint-Germain reportedly accepted a world-record €300m offer from Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia, the question is whether Mbappe would move off his stance that he would see out his contract with PSG.
The fact is that his current club want to speed up his exit if he will not commit his future to them. And they are attempting everything in the book to ensure they do not lose him for free. One of the threats they have made is that he could spend the entire season in the stands if he carries out his plan to leave on a free next summer.
Yet Italian Sports Lawyer Mattia Grassani remarked on TV Play (via Diario AS) that should they do so, it could backfire. If PSG’s behaviour goes beyond simply not calling him up for games, and extends into isolating him from the team deliberately and continued lack of consideration towards Mbappe, then he may have a legal case against him.
The Footballers Union in France will be keeping a keen eye on the situation, to ensure that Mbappe’s rights are upheld in the next month. Grassani says that if they have a solid case against PSG, Mbappe could terminate his contract unilaterally and receive a payout too.
It is hard to imagine this playing out. Not only is Mbappe due a loyalty bonus in September that he will no doubt want to pick up, believed, to be worth €40m, but also because Mbappe will not want to be caught up in the inevitable legal battle. If legal proceedings are started, they could drift on for months and prohibit him from playing. Luis Enrique will no doubt push for Mbappe’s inclusion should he remain a PSG player in September too.
