For Florentino Perez, Mbappé “gave in to political and economic pressure”

Europe 1 with AFP 1:57 p.m., June 16, 2022

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has accused PSG striker Kylian Mbappé of having given in to "political and economic pressure" to renew his contract with the French club, in an interview with the program "El Chiringuito".

"He always said that his dream was to play for Real Madrid and about a fortnight before (announcing his decision), the situation had changed because of the political and economic pressure" he suffered, estimated Wednesday evening the Madrid president, on the Mega channel.

A decisive political aspect

Perez, who had not yet spoken publicly about the aborted transfer of Mbappé to Madrid on May 22, insisted at length on the decisive political aspect, according to him, to tip the balance in favor of PSG.

"That, plus the money and the sporting leadership, changed his mind. When you find yourself in a panic situation like that, you try to get out of it by all means, I understand that. same, because it is not easy to receive a call from the President of the Republic", continued Florentino Perez.

Kylian Mbappé and Emmanuel Macron spoke on the phone before the French striker made his decision.

The striker said he appreciated the "good advice" of the French president, and the latter assured that Mbappé had made his choice "in conscience".

"Here, it is difficult to understand that the King of Spain is calling a club... It is a very difficult thing to understand (...). I also believe that it is not a very good sign for the rest of the clubs in France", added the president of Real Madrid, also explaining the decision of the French striker by the relations between Qatar, owner of PSG since 2011 via its sovereign fund, and France.

"Mbappé is not my Mbappé"

"It has two states, Qatar and France, which are linked, and Qatar is asking something from the French president... and I understand it like that because otherwise it's impossible," he continued.

However, President Merengue did not definitively close the door to Mbappé.

"Not now, because this Mbappé is not my Mbappé," he replied when asked if he still dreamed of seeing the French star in a Real Madrid jersey.

"Now, if that changes, life takes a thousand turns," he said, insisting that "no player in the whole history of Real Madrid has been above the rest."

Perez also returned to the Super League, this private competition which he carried with eleven other major European clubs and which had shaken the balance of football last year, assuring that the project was "still alive".

The Super League "is still alive", said Perez while awaiting a decision from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which must examine on July 11 and 12 a dispute between UEFA and the promoters of this competition .

Last May, Aleksander Ceferin, the president of UEFA, fierce opponent of the Super League which challenged the hegemony of the European body, assured that it was "finished for at least twenty years".

Of the twelve clubs, only three (Juventus Turin, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona) still proclaim their ambition to bring this private tournament to a successful conclusion.