Mbappé hints at ‘exciting’ future ahead of likely Madrid move

Kylian Mbappé has said he has a “very exciting” future ahead after leaving Paris Saint-Germain, saying it’s the “right moment” to move on from the Ligue 1 club.

The France star announced last week that he would be leaving PSG when his contract expires this summer, and he is now widely expected to join long-term suitors Real Madrid.

– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

Mbappé was named Ligue 1’s player of the season — for the fifth year in a row — at an awards ceremony in Paris on Monday.

“It’s a chapter of my life that is ending. Ligue 1 has been a major part of my career,” Mbappé told the audience.

“Now I’m turning a new page in my life. What comes next is very exciting, but that’s another matter…I want to thank my family, who’ve always supported me in the good and bad times. I know it was very important for my father that I made history in Ligue 1 before leaving, and I think, with humility, that I’ve done that.”

Mbappé has spent almost a decade playing in Ligue 1, first with Monaco, and since 2017, with PSG.

Throughout that time he has been a target for Real Madrid, coming especially close in 2022 when a last-minute change of heart saw him sign a new deal at PSG.

ESPN reported in February that Mbappé was finally set to join Madrid this summer, and on Friday, the forward confirmed that he would be leaving Paris, although he has not yet made his destination official.

“I think that in life you have to choose the right moment for everything,” Mbappé told journalists on Monday. “The only thing I know is that I’m leaving PSG. As for the rest, it isn’t the right moment to know that.”

LaLiga president Javier Tebas claimed on Monday that Mbappé would be signing a five-year contract at Madrid, which would keep him at the club until 2029.