Kylian Mbappe reveals how close he came to Liverpool transfer: ‘My mum wanted me to go’
Kylian Mbappe has revealed that his mum wanted him to choose a move to Liverpool before he opted to join Paris Saint-Germain in 2017.
The Reds were regularly linked with France superstar Mbappe during the Jurgen Klopp era at Anfield but nothing ever came of the speculation.
Mbappe burst onto the scene as a 16-year-old for Ligue 1 side Monaco, where he became their youngster ever player, before moving to PSG in 2017 on loan in August 2017 with a mandatory purchase option of €180m.
It wasn’t until 2024 that Mbappe moved on again with the France international waiting for his deal at PSG to tick down before signing for Real Madrid on a free transfer.
And, in an interview with The Athletic, Mbappe has now revealed how close he came to joining Liverpool before he made the move to PSG.
Mbappe said: “It was while I was playing in Monaco. I had to take a decision. And yes, I was close to Liverpool. My mum was a big fan of Jurgen Klopp and the favourite destination for my mum was Liverpool. She wanted me to go there.
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“I didn’t listen because I wanted to play in my city, Paris. I didn’t want to leave my country before I was someone. But yes, my mum was always saying ‘Liverpool – you’re going to be there, playing at Anfield, it’s going to be insane for you.’ I was like, ‘OK!'”
On his mum’s attempts to convince him of a move to Liverpool, Mbappe added: “She was like, ‘It’s a wonderful club, everybody’s so kind, it’s a family club, a big club.’
“She went to Anfield and fell in love with it. She watched a few games alone, to feel the atmosphere, because she wanted to imagine me in this stadium.
“All the time we were talking. [I would say:] ‘What do you think, Mum?’. She’d say, ‘For me, you have to go to Liverpool’. I said, ‘OK, OK, OK!’ because Jurgen Klopp was an amazing manager. I met him and had a wonderful relationship with him. I had big respect for him.”
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Mbappe concluded: “In the end I took the decision to go to PSG because for me, born and raised in Paris, there was no better feeling than to show I could be a star in my home town.”
Mbappe: I think this could be a good year for me
In another interview, Real Madrid attacker Mbappe outlined why he feels it could be his year to win the Ballon d’Or, he told RFI: “Because I’ve had a good year.
“I’ve had a great year on an individual level, and I know that’s the most important criterion for the Ballon d’Or.
“I was the top scorer in all the major competitions, and I think this could be a good year for me. I’ve got a good feeling about it.”
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