Paris St Germain forward Kylian Mbappe said he has not made up his mind about where he will play next season as his contract enters its final six months.
Mbappe said last year he would not renew his contract at PSG, which expires at the end of the 2023-24 season when he could leave Paris for free.
The France captain, who has long been linked with a move to Real Madrid, is now free to sign a pre-contract agreement with a new club.
“First of all, I’m very, very, very motivated for this year. It’s very important,” Mbappe told reporters after PSG’s 2-0 win over Toulouse in the French Super Cup final on Wednesday.
“As I said, we’ve got titles to go after and we’ve already won one, so that’s already done. After that, no, I haven’t made up my mind yet.
“But in any case, with the agreement I made with the chairman (Nasser Al-Khelaifi) this summer, it doesn’t matter what I decide.
“We managed to protect all parties and preserve the club’s serenity for the challenges ahead, which remains the most important thing. So we’ll say it’s secondary.”
Media reports in September said Mbappe had agreed to forego loyalty bonuses worth up to 100 million euros ($109.17 million) if he left PSG on a free transfer.
In 2022, Mbappe waited until May to announce a contract extension at PSG, just weeks before the transfer window opened. The 25-year-old said he may not leave it so late this time around.
“I think it was the end of May in 2022 because I didn’t know until May,” he added. “If I know what I want to do, why drag it out? It just doesn’t make sense.”
Real Madrid are not sitting on their hands though. Endrick, the latest Brazilian starlet, will join the club from Palmeiras when he turns 18 in July 2024 for a fee reported to be 72 million euros.
A move to Newcastle looks a more realistic possibility as the Magpies look to bolster a squad seriously depleted by injuries and the 10-month ban handed down to Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali, also for gambling. Eddie Howe’s men have slumped down the Premier League table in recent weeks and the Saudi-owned club looks badly in need of reinforcements if they are to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
(With inputs from Agencies)
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