Kylian Mbappe’s first speech as Real Madrid player in full (5:25)
Kylian Mbappe addresses a full Santiago Bernabéu as he is unveiled as a new Real Madrid player. (5:25)
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Adriana Garcia
Jul 18, 2024, 06:15 AM ET
Kylian Mbappé is prepared to sue former club Paris Saint-Germain if the French giants refuse to pay him the amount he is owed, according to the player’s mother Fayza Lamari.
Sources told ESPN the Ligue 1 champions are yet to pay Mbappé €80 million ($86m) for a bonus plus two months in 2024 wages.
Mbappé, 25, left PSG after his contract expired in June and joined Real Madrid as a free agent on a five-year contract.
When asked if Mbappé is ready to take PSG to court, Lamari told Le Parisien as reported in Diario AS: “If we have no other choice, yes, of course. Now, I really hope that the contract we signed two years ago is respected.
“Let’s stop saying that Kylian said or didn’t say, he did this or didn’t do that … In reality, no one can say what happened, neither me nor PSG’s representatives because for two years Kylian and the [club] president [Nasser Al-Khelaifi] always met alone, apart from once.
“And all that has not stopped Kylian from playing since the announcement [made by Mbappé to PSG of his departure] was made in February …”
Sources told ESPN that PSG won’t pay Mbappé what he is owed in an effort to recoup the money for his departure, which the sources said Mbappé agreed to with PSG back in August.
Lamari compared her son’s situation with PSG to a divorce.
“It is now in the hands of Kylian’s representatives,” she said. “But I trust PSG to get things back to normal very quickly. We just received a letter … Decisions will be made.
“Sometimes, when you separate, you have to decide who gets the TV, who gets the furniture or the car … That’s where we are. I hope that all this does not tarnish everything we have been through, that we do not leave it like this.
“As in a couple, once again, everything is never rosy, there are ups and downs. But in six months, things will be better.”
Mbappé, who was unveiled at Madrid this week, came close to joining the Spanish giants two years ago but had a late change of heart and signed a new contract with PSG until June 2024, a decision he does not regret.
“When you were born in Paris and grew up in Bondy, playing in the Parc des Princes is quite an event,” Lamari said.
“Kylian has never lied. He always told the [PSG] president that one day he would go to Real Madrid. Of course, when that happens, it’s complicated. But apart from Madrid, I would never have left Paris.
“It hasn’t been easy, but there are no regrets, just great emotions. It has been very, very difficult for Kylian, that’s clear.”
Mbappé is PSG’s all-time top scorer with 255 goals.
The France captain won six Ligue 1 titles in his seven seasons at the club. Lamari, meanwhile, said that her son, who described his Euro 2024 campaign as a “failure” having scored just once in five appearances, has room for improvement.
“Kylian can and must improve,” she said.
