In what can be described as a severe blow to the Saudis’ aspirations, Kylian Mbappe, the prolific striker from Paris Saint-Germain, has declined a meeting with Al Hilal officials —a direct jeopardy to their world record 300-million-euro ($333 million) deal.
The French star has refused ‘any discussion with the representatives of the Al-Hilal club, present in Paris this Wednesday,’ L’Equipe sports daily said.
Based on the report garnered, a group from the Saudi club made their way to Paris to complete the signing of Brazilian player Malcom from Zenit Saint Petersburg.
Alongside their other objectives, they sought to present their project to Mbappe during their time in the French capital.
‘This approach will not succeed,’ added L’Equipe because the entourage of the 24-year-old player ‘refused any discussions with the representatives of the Saudi club’.
‘The captain of Les Bleus has never considered this option,’ the report added.
Read also: Captain Marquinhos Seeks Amicable End To Mbappe’s Rift
Al Hilal, based in Riyadh, was granted permission by PSG to initiate discussions with Mbappe, even though the player had never shown any interest in joining the rapidly expanding Saudi league
With just one year left on his contract with PSG, the club is eager for Mbappe to depart now rather than leaving for free next summer.
Despite PSG’s best efforts, Mbappe remains unwilling to sign a new contract, and the French champions strongly suspect that he has a preexisting deal in place to transfer to Real Madrid next year
The general consensus is that Real Madrid’s strategy involved securing Mbappe on a free transfer next year, enticing him with a mind-boggling signing fee, as they would not be required to pay PSG any transfer fee for his services.
The disagreement between Mbappe and the French club reached a critical point last weekend, resulting in him being excluded from their squad for the tour of Japan and South Korea.
There are hints that unless Mbappe resolves with PSG, he could be excluded from selection for an entire year.
With an impressive 212 goals in 260 appearances, Mbappe stands as the all-time top scorer for the club, making him the second most expensive player in history, only behind his PSG teammate Neymar.
At the time of his loan move from Monaco to PSG in August 2017, he was yet to reach his twenties and was still a teenager.