
Lighting up the headlines for not just his goals and assists, Kylian Mbappe has taken the footballing world by storm, not just with his goals and assists, but with the letter he sent to PSG in June, making clear his intention not to extend his current contract with the French champions.
Literally holding the Parisien club to ransom, their finest twinkle toes appear bent on his transfer decision.
Reports from transfer expert Fabrizio Romano have stated:
“People in PSG believe that Kylian Mbappe has an agreement with Real Madrid for next summer (June 2024) and he wants to respect that agreement by refusing to join any other club this summer.”
This report comes as a surprise to many, especially those in the hierarchy at the French club given that Mbappe, only last summer, put an end to a long-drawn summer saga between Real Madrid and PSG by renewing his contract with a three-year deal at the club.
Mbappe’s bumper three-year contract would see the star earn a €180 million signing-on bonus, a whopping salary of €630 million over three years, and the power to have a say in transfer decisions at the club.
Amidst the fest and felicitation that followed Mbappe’s contract signing, the forward who has been directly involved in 397 goals for club and country since bursting onto the scene in 2015 (averaging a goal or assist once every 74.2 minutes), never hid his desire to someday play for Spanish giant Real Madrid.
Bearing in mind the amazing statistics posed by the French man, there is no surprise as to why a host of clubs are hot on the chase to secure his signature.

PSG, who are now forced to place Mbappe on the transfer market, are in danger of paying the forward a huge bonus and salary in excess of €100 million if he stays at the club this season.
There remains a lot to be unravelled in this saga involving one of the finest players the footballing world has ever seen, and in this piece, we will be dissecting the pros and cons of the ongoing Mbappe transfer saga for PSG.
PROS
Reduced wage bill:
Reducing the wage bill by €630 million within a three-year span is a situation any club owner would embrace in an instant.
According to data courtesy of Capology, Mbappe’s wage accounts for about 20.5% of the total wage bill of €338,097,277.92 being paid excluding bonuses at PSG.
For a club that has faced challenges in generating significant income from players’ transfers and has not experienced the most favourable financial inflows in the transfer market, letting go of the Frenchman (at this price) is arguably an astute move.

The lurking hammer of UEFA Financial Fair Play, which could be knocking on the door of the Parisien club soon, further supports this claim.
Refocusing of the club’s project:
While it has been proven beyond reasonable doubt that teams with marquee players like Mbappe have to build their structure around such players, the potential exit of the French star could reawaken PSG to the qualities of other players in their squad.

Similar to when the Qatari government took over affairs in 2011, PSG could return to the glory days when a visible structure was built in favour of the general team and not just centred around a single player.
With new signings like South Korea’s Kang-in Lee and Real Madrid’s Marco Asensio, partnering with Neymar Jr, the team could be on course for its best days yet. One would be drawing this premise from the underwhelming results the notable Galactico assembled by Florentino Perez in his first stint as President of Real Madrid achieved.
Letting off a huge ego from the squad:
Another advantage PSG stands to gain from letting off the 24-year-old could be a purely psychological boost and overall change of aura at the French club.
It should be recalled that in January 2018, then-PSG captain Thiago Silva was reported by Marca to have addressed a dressing room fracas which was reportedly between a young player and one of the team’s leaders.
Then coached by current Aston Villa gaffer – Unai Emery, there was a fracas between two South American camps, with the Brazilian group, following the arrivals of Dani Alves and Neymar, at loggerheads with the rest, led by Edinson Cavani. A few sources suggested this strife was borne out of the preferential treatment that was given to superstar forward Neymar Jr.

Ensuring there was order restored to the dressing room, Silva was quoted to have said:
“It is an important moment for the club. We should all be together and not do things that aren’t good for the group.”
Now faced with a similar situation as per how Mbappe is being treated, purging the team of the player could be just the right call to make. Rather than being consumed in speculation and the attention of one player, the club can focus on building squad unity in the hopes that it improves their performances domestically, but more importantly, the Champions League.
CONS
Just like in every situation in life, there are advantages, as well as disadvantages to any of the options open to PSG.
For PSG, letting Kylian Mbappe leave this summer could spark negative repercussions at the club including:
Loss of huge financial sponsorship:
The Qatari Sports Investment-owned club could find themselves in a difficult situation financially, in the event that they let their top goal scorer leave this summer.
It is believed high-profile brands like Air Jordan, EA Sports – a brand which Mbappe was the face of for three years running and a host of other sponsors looking to partner with the French club, could distance themselves from the club.
This is due to the loss of media traction and attention the club would lose due to the exit of the star forward.
Potential for UCL win drought to continue:
Irrespective of the recent successes recorded by PSG, the elephant in the room remains the club’s quest for their elusive first UEFA Champions League trophy.
Though yet to win since Mbappe’s arrival in 2017, the club undoubtedly has a higher chance of winning the European title with Mbappe in their squad. A departure for the forward only makes the club’s dreams for a UCL a taller order to attain.
Potential loss of appeal:
Already ranked as the seventh-best league in Europe according to Europe’s League rankings, PSG and the overall French Ligue 1 face the risk of losing their attraction to top players worldwide.
The potential departure of Mbappe could trigger a chain reaction, leading to the departure of other key players and causing many other stars to reject the league’s offerings.
It should be recalled that the influx of top stars to the French league was on the back of the huge financial offering provided by the Qatari backing of the Paris club.
With the Saudi Pro League increasingly becoming the epicentre of huge paychecks for football stars, the French League looks set to lose the appeal it has struggled to garner in the last decade.

Top stars like Lionel Messi, Mbappe and Neymar Jr amongst a few were reasons the world had its gaze fixed on the happenings in the footballing world in France, but with these stars gradually exiting the French league, Ligue 1 could be on course for a return to the dark years of the early 2000s.
A sporting win for Saudi Arabia:
Another significant drawback of Mbappe’s potential exit from PSG is the blow it could deal to the Qatari Sports Investment (QSI)- the owners of the club. This situation would likely be perceived as a direct challenge and humiliation to QSI, considering the ongoing cold war of superiority between Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The tensions between Qatar and Saudi Arabia have been evident, with a recent example being the World Cup 2022 row. During this dispute, Qatari broadcast station Bein Sports, which holds millions of subscribers in Saudi Arabia, saw its streamlines cut off due to the tournament being hosted in Qatar. The severing of ties between the two nations in this context has fueled the animosity between them.
Notably, Bein Sports, being the parent company of TOD broadcasts, is a major player across the Middle East and North Africa, even surpassing the popularity of Netflix and Disney in Saudi Arabia. Additionally, incidents like the sanctions imposed on former PSG forward Lionel Messi when he visited Saudi Arabia have only added fuel to the fire, contributing to the potential for a sporting war between the two Middle Eastern countries.
If Mbappe were to make a move to Saudi Arabia, it would undoubtedly be seen as a victory for the Saudi Kingdom in its ongoing rivalry with Qatar. Such a transfer would symbolize a significant setback for PSG and QSI, further intensifying the competition between the two nations in the sports domain.


Must See
-
Basketball
/ 1 year agoWho Will Define the Next Generation of the NBA?
We are in a new era of basketball, centered around high volume of 3-point...
By Samson Osaze -
Flos Live
/ 1 year agoFLOS’ FIVE: Unforgettable Moments from the ‘Happy Slam’ Downunder
The Australian Open, often affectionately dubbed the “Happy Slam” in the eloquent words of...
By Samson Osaze -
American Football
/ 1 year agoFLOS’ Five: Super Bowl LVIII Predictions
The 2023/24 NFL season brimmed with captivating storylines, breakout stars, struggling favourites, and unexpected...
By Samson Osaze -
Football
/ 3 years agoAfrican Super League: What You Need to Know
The President of the Confederation of African football (CAF), Dr. Patrice Motsepe announced the...