Paris Saint-Germain’s former sporting director Leonardo has urged Kylian Mbappe to leave this summer amid his rebellion with the French club.
The French superstar continues to make headlines due to his conflict with PSG in the wake of his decision not to renew his contract, with his current deal expiring in the summer of 2024.
With PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi insisting that Mbappe wouldn’t be allowed to leave for free, the French forward retaliated with some disparaging comments.
He labelled PSG as a divisive club and pointed his finger at the club’s hierarchy for the perennial failure in the Champions League.
Leonardo, who played a key role in Mbappe’s lucrative extension last year, has urged PSG to part ways with the 2022 World Cup finalist due to his ill behaviour.
The former chief also insisted that no player comes above the club. He also took a cheeky dig at Mbappe by stating that PSG can win UCL without Mbappe as all the previous winners had done without the 2018 World Cup winner in their squad.
“Paris-Saint-Germain existed before Kylian Mbappe, and it will exist after him,” Leonardo told L’Equipe.
“He’s been in Paris for six years and, over those six seasons, five different clubs have won the Champions League, none of which had Mbappe in their ranks.
“That means it’s entirely possible to win this competition without him.”
“With his behaviour over the last two years, Mbappe is showing that he’s not yet a player capable of really guiding a team.
“He’s a great player – not a leader. He’s a great goalscorer, not a creative one. It’s hard to build a team around him.”
Real Madrid and Liverpool have been touted as the front-runners to land Mbappe if he leaves the Parc des Princes this summer.
