PSG sensation Kylian Mbappe is reportedly demanding that 14 players, including manager Mauricio Pochettino and fellow striker Neymar, leave the French club this summer in a mass exodus.
The 23-year-old recently pledged his future to the club by rejecting Real Madrid to sign a new three-year contract with the French giants worth £650,000 a week.
The Frenchman is thought to have been handed additional influence behind the scenes as part of the lucrative arrangement, and he could be prepared to start pulling the strings in the transfer window, something he now denies.
According to Mundo Deportivo, the World Cup champion wants a wholesale exodus of talent, including coaching staff and players, with as many as 14 people’s jobs on the line.
The star forward’s list is rumored to include Neymar and his manager, Mauricio Pochettino.
Mauro Icardi, Julian Draxler, Ander Herrera, Idrissa Gueye, Leandro Paredes, and Thilo Kehrer are among the players Mbappe is believed to demand for their exit.
Danilo Pereira, Layvin Kurzawa, Pablo Sarabia, Juan Bernat, Colin Dagba, and Sergio Rico are all believed to be in his crosshairs.
On Thursday night, though, Kylian Mbappe slammed the reports on Twitter, calling them “FAKE.”
Despite being under contract with the French club until the end of next season, the manager’s future has been questioned recently.
Recall that Mauricio Pochettino led PSG to the Ligue 1 title but PSG’s poor performance in Europe, which saw them eliminated in the last 16 by Real Madrid, has prompted speculation that the former Tottenham manager could be removed.
Before Manchester United announced Erik ten Hag as the next permanent manager, the Argentine was linked to the coaching job at Old Trafford.
Pochettino, on the other hand, has stated that he intends to stay at PSG for the remaining year of his contract, claiming that he is motivated at the club.
‘Before I indicated [that I want to stay] 100 % here,’ the 50-year-old told Spanish radio show ‘El Partidazo de COPE.’
‘Today, I say 100% here [as well].’ My contract is up for renewal in a year. The obstacles are there, and any coach will be motivated by them.
‘Of course, I want to continue indefinitely.’ PSG is a club with a lot of ambition. Because of the public’s ambition, the Champions League [elimination] is the worst letdown.’
Meanwhile, after joining the French giants for £198 million in 2017, Neymar remains the most expensive footballer of all time, although his status at the club is thought to be waning.
His relationship with Mbappe has deteriorated to the point where the club and president Nasser Al-Khelaifi are willing to let him go, according to L’Equipe.
Newcastle United have been linked with a bid for Neymar and are likely one of the few clubs that can afford him, but the Brazilian is said to have no desire to come to the North East.
Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Real Madrid, and Bayern Munich, on the other hand, are not interested in signing the 30-year-old.
