Kylian Mbappe confirms PSG departure ahead of expected summer move to Real Madrid

Kylian Mbappe has confirmed he will leave PSG at the end of the season, announcing that he needs to leave France for a “new challenge”.

It is widely expected that Mbappe will join Real Madrid as a free agent this summer, with the forward set to sign a five-year contract worth £12.8million a season and receive a £128million signing-on fee.

That has not yet been made official, but Mbappe informed PSG earlier this season that he intended to leave the club, paving the way for him to make the move to Madrid that has appeared inevitable over the last few years.

The 25-year-old will not get a perfect farewell to his seven years at the club, after they were beaten by Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League semi-finals, and he has now announced his imminent departure, ahead of PSG’s final home game of the season against Toulouse on Sunday.

Mbappe said in a video posted on his social media channels: "I've always said that I would speak with you when the time comes and so I wanted to announce to you all that it's my last year at Paris Saint-Germain. I will not extend and the adventure will come an end in a few weeks.

"I will play my last game at the Parc des Princes on Sunday. It's a lot of emotions, many years where I had the chance and the great honour to be a member of the biggest French club, one of the best in the world which allowed me to arrive here, to have my first experience in a club with a lot of pressure, to grow as a player by being alongside some of the best in history, to meet a lot of people and to grow as a man with all the glory and the mistakes I've made.”

While there was no mention of his next club in the video, Mbappe explained his decision to pursue a move abroad.

“It’s hard, hard and I never thought it would be this difficult to leave my country, France, Ligue 1, a championship I have always known,” he said.

“But I think I needed this, a new challenge after seven years.”

It brings an end to a long-running saga, with Mbappe on several occasions appearing set to leave PSG, only to then commit his future to the Ligue 1 side at the last minute.

Mbappe has 43 goals in all competitions this season, and a record 255 in total for the club, and spoke of his love for PSG when directly addressing the fans.

“I haven’t always lived up to the love you all gave me for seven years, but I never wanted to cheat,” Mbappe said.

“I have always wanted to be effective. PSG is a club that never leaves anyone indifferent. We can love or hate it, I made the choice of loving it.”

He added: “Believe me that you will remain in my heart forever.”