Nicolas Anelka tells Kylian Mbappe he has to LEAVE PSG for a team in England or Spain… as the former France striker inists: ‘if you want to win the Ballon d’Or, you have to compete with the best’
- Nicolas Anelka has told Kylian Mbappe he will have to leave PSG at some point
- The striker is out of contract with the Ligue 1 club at the end of next season
- Anelka believes Mbappe should join a club in the Premier League or LaLiga
- The 22-year-old has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid
Kylian Mbappe must leave Paris Saint-Germain if he wants to win the biggest accolades in football, says Nicolas Anelka.
The 22-year-old is out of contract with the Ligue 1 club at the end of next season and has so far resisted signing an extension, with Real Madrid desperate to sign him.
Anelka, who had two spells with PSG, wrote a dedicated column letter to Mbappe for The Athletic following his penalty shoot-out miss against Switzerland.
Nicolas Anelka (left) has told Kylian Mbappe (right) he has to leave PSG if he wants to win the biggest accolades
The forward was the only player to miss in the shoot-out and France, who were the favourites to win the competition, were eliminated from Euro 2020.
Anelka told Mbappe that scoring goals will help heal the pain of his miss but he also had advice on what he should do regarding his future.
The former Chelsea and Real Madrid striker encouraged Mbappe to make a move away from France and suggest England and Spain as possible destinations.
The former Chelsea and Real Madrid striker said Mbappe should join a club in England or Spain
He wrote: ‘You have at least two choices — stay in Paris or move to Real Madrid. Both of them can win the Champions League these days. When I was at PSG, that wasn’t the case.
‘That choice depends on what you want to achieve in football. If you want the biggest accolades, you will have to move from PSG at some point. Whatever you do in Paris will be good, but somebody will always say, “Well, you did great for PSG but it was only in France. The best leagues are in England and Spain, so you didn’t compete with the best players in the best league.”
‘You will have to decide. If you want to win the Ballon d’Or, which is what you should be looking at to echo Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, you will have to compete with the best.
‘You can’t say you compete with the best all the time when you are at PSG. The French league is not easy, don’t get me wrong, but I think the toughest league is in England.
Mbappe’s penalty miss against Switzerland resulted in France being knocked out of Euro 2020
‘So, if you want to be one of the best, then do what you do in Paris but with Chelsea or United or Arsenal or Manchester City or Liverpool. Or go to Spain to Madrid or Barcelona. Or maybe Italy. Then we can speak about a more global impact.’
Mbappe said no decision would be made on his future until after Euro 2020. But with France now out following his miss in the shoot-out against Switzerland, doubts have crept in over his commitment to PSG.
L’Equipe reported that Mbappe is set to see out the remainder of his contract, with the striker not satisfied with his current situation.
