… to declaring he’s “here to win the Champions League”
Kylian Mbappe’s declaration that he wants to reach the top of European soccer seems to be aimed squarely at his former club, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
Mbappe, who never won the UEFA Champions League in his entire career with PSG, said at his Real Madrid signing ceremony that he joined the club to win the Champions League.
Real Madrid officially announced the signing of Mbappe on Saturday. The club announced that they had reached an agreement with Mbappe last month, but it was only after a medical and the signing of a contract that the player became official. Mbappe’s contract is for five years, and he will wear the number 9 shirt that his idol Cristiano Ronaldo wore when he first joined Real.
Mbappe met and greeted president Florentino Perez at the Ciudad Real Madrid, the club’s training ground, before signing the contract with him. He then posed for an ‘official photo’ with Perez in front of a trophy case displaying the trophies the club has won over the years, holding a shirt with the number 9 on it.
There was no time to rest. Mbappe arrived at Real’s home stadium, the Santiago Bernabeu, and was inducted in front of 80,000 fans. The club had announced on Oct. 10 that Mbappe’s induction ceremony would take place on Nov. 16.
There were two reasons why Real had to formalize the signing of Mbappe just a month after announcing that they had agreed to terms with him.
The first is the length of Mbappe’s contract with PSG. Mbappe was on a 2+1 year contract with PSG, with an option for a one-year extension, but instead of staying at PSG, he opted to become a free agent at the end of his contract. As a result, his contract with PSG ended at the end of last season, but Real could not officially sign Mbappe before then because his contract was on paper until the end of June.
The other was the UEFA 2024 European Football Championship. Mbappe joined the French national soccer team shortly after the end of the 2023-24 season and participated in Euro 2024 in Germany for about a month. Mbappe, France’s leading striker and captain, struggled through a broken nose, even playing with a mask, but was unable to help his country reach the final, losing to Spain in the semifinals.
Rather, the 16th was the date Real moved up as far as they could. Real decided to sign Mbappe shortly after France’s elimination from Euro 2024, and decided to hold his induction ceremony on the 16th. This is why Real were able to announce Mbappe’s signing on the 10th, while Euro 2024 was still in full swing.
At the ceremony, Mbappe took to the microphone in front of a packed Santiago Bernabeu and spoke about joining Real. Mbappe is a fluent Spanish 파워볼게임 speaker, having studied the language since his days at AS Monaco, and has been taking Spanish classes since he was in school.
“I was so excited that I only slept for about an hour,” Mbappe says. I watched Real Madrid play last season, too. I can’t wait to adapt to Real Madrid’s tactics.” ”I can play in any position Carlo Ancelotti wants me to play. I’m happy to be a Real Madrid player.”
“Moving to Real Madrid was a dream at first, but then it became my goal. I knew it was my destiny to play for Real Madrid. My goals are not different from the goals of the team, Real Madrid. Real Madrid has won so many titles, but now I want to be part of it. Real Madrid is always better after winning the Champions League. My goal is to win it,” he said.
Mbappe’s words are echoed by Real, the most decorated team in the Champions League, who are among the favorites to win the competition every season. Last season, they won their 15th Champions League trophy, defeating Bayern Munich in the semifinals and Borussia Dortmund in the final behind the likes of freshman Jude Bellingham and ace Vinicius Junior.
On the one hand, Mbappe’s desire to win the Champions League could be interpreted as a snipe at his former club PSG.
Even at PSG, Mbappe’s dream was to win the Champions League. PSG, backed by Qatari capital, bought Mbappe, Neymar, and other international superstars, changed managers repeatedly, and tried to make themselves competitive in the Champions League, but never won the title.
In 2019-20, they made it all the way to the final, only to be brought to their knees by a 0-1 defeat in Munich. It’s still a painful memory for Mbappe.
Now, Mbappe wants to fulfill his longtime dream of winning the Champions League with his dream club, Real. He”s surrounded by some of the best players in the world, including Vinicius, Bellingham, and Hodriguez, who are united by a ‘winning mentality’. That’s why Mbappe can confidently call for a Champions League title challenge.
“One, two, three, Hala Madrid!” Mbappe concluded his speech with a chant of ‘One, two, three, Hala Madrid!’ before walking off the podium.