THE FAIRY TALE RISE AND RISE OF KYLIAN MBAPPÉ
ON TRANSFER deadline day Kylian Mbappé finally completed his protracted move from Monaco to Paris Saint-Germain to become the most expensive teenager in the history of football. He will now line up alongside Neymar and Edinson Cavani in a frontline that cost the Parisian side a staggering £338 million (R5.6 billion) to assemble.
The deal sees Mbappé become the most expensive European footballer, and takes PSG’s summer spending to above £400m. He will join the French side on a season-long loan, with PSG obliged to buy him next summer for a fee in the region of £166m.
PSG were not the only team interested in signing him. Real Madrid were also keen, as were several Premier League clubs, including Manchester United, City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea.
In fact, Chelsea took Mbappé on trial when he was just 11, and he even played in a junior game there against a Charlton Athletic side.
He still proudly has the Chelsea shirt with “KYLIAN 10” on from that day.
Arsenal tried to sign him last summer, with Arsene Wenger commenting recently that he saw something of a young Thierry Henry in the forward.
“Mbappé has similarities to Thierry Henry,” Wenger said last season. “He has a huge talent. He plays for Monaco, and Thierry Henry played for Monaco. When I was in Monaco I could see with Thierry Henry similarities. But of course after that, what makes the career after is the mental aspect that Thierry had. This young boy has to show that he has similar qualities on the mental front that Thierry had.
“I think he’s an exceptional talent who promises to have a great future. Unfortunately today, all these young players are in full view from very, very early on, and all the big clubs want them.
“I hope the fact that everybody is already talking of nobody but him isn’t going to have a negative impact on his future.”
But the big clubs have been interested in Mbappé for almost as long as he has been kicking a football.
In December 2012, in the week Mbappé turned 14, he spent a week at Real Madrid, organised by Zinedine Zidane. He loved the experience, but decided with his father not to sign for Real Madrid in the end.
Mbappe’s father is Wilfrid, who grew up coaching his son at AS Bondy, the local team in the suburb of Paris where Kylian grew up.
Kylian was running around with a football from as soon as he could walk and, when he started playing for AS Bondy at under-8s, he was so good opponents claimed he could not be part of their age group.
Although he was always small for his age, Mbappé stood out for his speed and skill, which is how scouts from across the world knew about him. He was soon part of the set-up at Clairefontaine, the famous French training centre, and attracting interest from top teams.
He could have signed for whoever he chose, but went to Monaco, just ahead of Caen, in 2013, attracted to the youth development programme.
He excelled in Monaco’s youth team before setting both Ligue 1 and the Champions League alight this season, with a series of phenomenal displays. He quickly set the record as their youngest ever player, then as their youngest ever goalscorer. And when Mbappé shredded Manchester City with his pace in Europe earlier this season, it was with the eyes of the world’s biggest clubs all on him. Mbappe finished his breakthrough season with a record of 26 goals in 44 games – including six in the Champions League. He was also called up for the senior France squad for the first time to face Luxembourg and Spain in March 2017, becoming the second youngest player to ever represent the country.
Those close to the player insist he remains a quiet, grounded individual, and in one recent interview he strived to remain as humble as possible.
“I would not say what I do is extraordinary,” Mbappé modestly told the French press after yet another match-winning performance for Monaco. “I would just say that I am able to do what I know best. I would not say it’s extraordinary. Extraordinary is a player who can score 60 goals. There are not a lot. Otherwise I think we would overuse the term. I would not say it’s amazing, but I’m on a good run.”
He may not consider himself to be extraordinary, but PSG certainly do. 111 days before his 19th birthday, Mbappé is already the second most expensive footballer in the history of the sport: or roughly £6m for each of the 27 goals he has scored in professional football. – The Independent