Kylian Mbappe Leaving PSG, Farewell Ceremony Denied As He Moves to Madrid
Kylian Mbappe's seven-year contract with PSG expires at the end of this season. His likely next destination is Real Madrid.
Mbappe had hoped to lead PSG to Champions League glory, but they were defeated by Dortmund in the second half of the semi-final.
PSG failed to overturn a one-goal first-leg deficit against Dortmund, losing 2-0 on aggregate.
Mbappe was one of four PSG players to hit the woodwork in the second half, and coach Luis Enrique complained his side had been "unlucky."
"It will be hard for PSG to do that," given how close they were to reaching the final for the second time four years after their defeat against Bayern Munich in Lisbon.
That will forever remain as close as Mbappe came to lifting the European Cup with his hometown team, for whom he is their all-time top scorer with 255 goals. 42 of those have come in Europe's elite club competition, but he could not add to that tally across the two legs against Dortmund.
"The end of his dream" was the headline in the sports daily L'Equipe, which scathingly assessed the France captain's performance, awarding him a mark of two out of 10.
Being knocked out by the team that sits fifth in the Bundesliga seems like a disaster for a club that has invested as much as PSG since the Qatari takeover in 2011.
The Champions League knockout rounds have been a source of great disappointment for PSG. The most notable is their 6-1 loss to Barcelona in the last 16 in 2017, after winning the first leg 4-0.
Despite the presence of Mbappe, this PSG team was not expected to make it this far.
Mbappe will play his last game for PSG in the French Cup final against Lyon on May 25th, as he is set to leave the club for Real Madrid.
Florentino Perez: ‘Who do we bring?’
— TC (@totalcristiano) May 12, 2024
The fans shout: ‘MBAPPE!’
He starts laughing. It’s done. 😂 pic.twitter.com/sEWolStXV7
However, perhaps a lack of experience at this level ultimately costs them.
According to statisticians Opta, their starting line-up had an average age of 24 years and 157 days, the youngest for any team in a Champions League semi-final since Arsenal against Manchester United in 2009.
Luis Enrique hopes the experience garnered by his young players will help them next year.
It is hard to imagine how PSG can be better equipped to win the Champions League without Mbappe, even if they will indeed spend big money on a replacement," captain Marquinhos told broadcaster Canal Plus.
Over the last three months, the coach has regularly either left Mbappe out of his team or taken his star player off in domestic league games, apparently in the name of planning for next season.
"We need to remember that it is a new project with a new coach, with lots of changes.
There are lots of positives and good things to take forward into next season," captain Marquinhos told broadcaster Canal Plus.
That strategy has not ultimately helped PSG win the one trophy they really crave in this campaign, and Mbappe — now aged 25 — will hope to finally get his hands on it after leaving Paris.