Kylian Mbappé is in the full bloom of his outrageous talent – if he moves up to the Saudi Arabian pro league, that could spell a crush. Meunier/PSG via Getty Images
The Saudi operatives waving the absurd check at Kylian Mbappé are seduced not so much by his skill as by his reputation. That they are willing to pay £260m for him to sign for just one season proves that this is essentially a power play designed to show these relative poor in the Premier League where the true lies. reward. This is not a bargaining tactic, but an exercise in blowing everyone else out of the water. The vulgarity of money is obvious. But the implications, if Mbappé agrees to this ultimate sinecure of the desert, could be enormous.
Because Mbappé doesn't fit the typical Saudi target profile of fading stars in their mid-30s, most of whom could easily be tempted by a year or two in Riyadh if it provides financial security for a lifetime. He is 24 years old, in the full bloom of incredible talent, and only seven months before he scores his first hat-trick in a World Cup final since Jeff Hurst. His signing with Al-Hilal would be a far more brazen PR stunt than 35-year-old Karim Benzema or 38-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, transforming the Saudi Pro League from a gaudy twilight home for near-retirees to a serious competitive destination.
< p>If Mbappe cares about anything other than his bank account, he should pause before agreeing. Here is a player aiming to electrify the Euro next summer for France, and that goal is unlikely to be best served by partnering with the likes of André Carrillo and Sergei Milinkovic-Savic in front of the 9,000 fans who attend Al Hilala's home games “. Stadium with 68,000 seats. For all the rhetoric that Ronaldo's move to Al Nasr will create “new galaxies”, the list of his teammates still looks painfully sparse.
But Mbappe represented much more than just acquiring a trophy. The consequence of the Golden Boot winner trading the European top league for Saudi Arabia will be to convince other young players at the zenith of their careers that this is a viable means of advancement. And it's priceless for a regime that is desperate to use sport to retouch the darker side of its reputation.
Kylian Mbappe's path forward
While £260m seems like a ridiculous number, it's not much more than the Public Investment Fund spent on Phil Mickelson to lead the LIV Golf lead in his early 50s. What the Saudis want above all else is for their sports annexation policy to bring power and respectability. And in that regard, Mbappe is arguably the most reliable player, a player so gifted and in demand that Paris Saint-Germain once catered to his every whim.
When the club convinced him to sign last May a contract for another three years, rejected by Real Madrid, this was due not only to £71 million per season, but also guarantees that a different coach and sports director would be appointed. Four months later, he reported that President Macron had personally intervened to repel Real Madrid's approach, telling him: “You are so important to the country.”
Mbappe has reached a level of fame that goes beyond football and where he actually becomes a geopolitical pawn. This is a fate that few people are familiar with. Perhaps only Pelé could have witnessed his extremes during his lifetime, as in 1961 the Brazilian government declared him a “national treasure”. This move made it a cultural asset of such incalculable prestige that it could not be taken outside the country. Macron, desperate to be photographed next to Mbappé during the latest World Cup in Qatar, would like to do the same with France's own young icon. But the time is coming when Saudi Arabia's generosity will turn the head of even the most stubborn.
Judging by Al-Hilal's outlandish proposal, that moment may be fast approaching. At first glance, this is too attractive for Mbappe to refuse. Of course, it is better to slip away to Riyadh for a few months than to vegetate in Paris, refusing to play, but taking the money, thus risking being branded in the French media as an egocentric slacker. His relationship with PSG soured irreparably after his official letter informing him that he would not renew his contract by one year. Now he can plunder untold wealth before pursuing his dream at Real Madrid.
For Saudi Arabia, Mbappé's arrival will be a game-changer for their growing league, signaling that it shouldn't just be a luxury twilight zone for those past their prime. Yes, the man himself is concerned about whether football is competitive enough, whether it is possible to maintain his interest by attacking Al-Hilal with players he has never heard of. But to be perfectly honest, did Mbappe really test his abilities by playing for six years for a dominant team in France? Not unreasonably when you look at some of PSG's inconsistencies, Ligue 1 is still referred to as the “farmers' league”.
He won't be too sorry for the bland image-washing of the Saudis. or. After all, he has been doing this for quite some time on behalf of PSG's financial tycoons in Qatar, another authoritarian state that uses sport like a sword. “Obviously something new is going on,” says Richard Masters, chief executive of the Premier League, following Al Hilal’s stunning bid. This is the most dramatic expression of the changed reality in football, the recognition that Saudi tanks are now firmly parked on the turf of traditional powers.
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