Kylian Mbappe said he was convinced last year was the right time to leave Paris Saint-Germain and join Real Madrid but the France forward said the call of home led to him signing a contract extension with the Ligue 1 champions.
Amid Real’s interest, Mbappe signed a contract extension with PSG that will keep the 23-year-old tied with the French club until 2025.
Real had pursued Mbappe last year when he had a year left on his contract and though they had reported bids as high as 200 million euros ($213 million) rejected last summer, they were ready to wait and sign him for free this year.
“It’s always been a difficult decision... I wanted time to make the right decision. I didn’t have any issues with pressure because I’ve been living with that since I was 14,” Mbappe told reporters on Monday.
“Everybody knows I wanted to leave last year.The context is different now, in sporting terms and personal terms.
“France is the country where I grew up, I’ve always lived here and leaving wasn’t right... The sporting project has changed as well, that made me want to stay, I don’t think my story is over yet.”
“I have lots of respect for (Real president) Florentino Perez and for Real Madrid. They wanted to do a lot to make me happy. So I thank them for that.”