Joined in 2023 
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His parents grew up in Bondy: Wilfried, of Cameroonian origin, and Mbappé’s mother Fayza, of Algerian descent. Mixed marriages are common in the Parisian suburbs, the banlieues, but the couple did have to defy some local disapproval. Earlier this summer, Mbappe was dropped from the list of travelling players who joined PSG's pre-season tour of South Korea and Japan. Then, when the squad returned to training in Paris earlier this month, Mbappe was sent to train with the reserves and was even left to watch from the bench as PSG opened their Ligue 1 campaign against Lorient at the Parc des Princes on Saturday. There was evidence of a hangover from that loss in PSG's following match against Brest at the weekend, and indeed they would have dropped points had it not been for the striker. In the final minute of the match, he latched onto a pass from Lionel Messi, sped clear of the defence and rounded the goalkeeper to tap into an empty net. It was a finish that gave PSG a 2-1 win on what had promised to be a frustrating evening. Mbappé marvelled at the tension on the faces of other professionals, because he didn’t feel it himself. Everything came easily to him, without great sacrifice, he has said. When I ask about stress in a profession of hypercompetitive men, he shrugs: “Daily life is easy.”
His huge goal tally meant he was named the Ligue 1 top scorer for a fourth straight season. Kylian Mbappe 2020-21 stats He started 2023 on a negative note as PSG lost 3-1 in a top-of-the-table match against Lens, Mbappe failing to score or assist. French fans like their stars humble. Mbappé has explained “the French mentality” to Neymar, who favours a bling-bling, poker-playing party lifestyle. Mbappé says, “In Brazil, they are more festive, in France more serious. Here it’s not considered good to display your passions. People will think he’s neglecting PSG because he plays poker. I think he has begun to understand that. At first it was hard for him because he experienced it as an affront. When he arrived, they put his face on the Eiffel Tower, and six months later they’re asking him why he’s playing poker. In France, people know what you have but they don’t want to see it. They just want to see you playing football, smiling.” He finished on a career-best tally of 29 Ligue 1 goals after netting a penalty in a 3-2 loss against Clermont on the final day of the season. He might have hit 30 for the first time but tried to set up Lionel Messi for a goodbye goal - the Argentine missed a simple chance.I took time to start talking about it, because I wasn’t ready,” he admits. “I had a lot of things to digest: my change of status, my new life. But I have always opposed all types of violence.”
Mbappe bagged a brace in his next game, sparing Paris' blushes to help secure a 4-3 win over Lille.
Kylian Mbappe 2020-21 stats
Mbappe became the first player to net FIVE goals in a competitive game for PSG in January when his side beat non-league outfit Pays de Cassell 7-0 in the French Cup, with the forward also grabbing an assist for Neymar. In the 2020-21 season, Mbappe scored 27 times from just 27 starts (31 total appearances) in Ligue 1, also contributing seven assists.
He was shut out in PSG's subsequent Ligue 1 game against Lyon, which ended in a 1-0 victory for the Parisians. Nevertheless, he completed the 90 minutes, with Neymar taken off before him. While PSG suffered huge disappointment against Real Madrid in the Champions League last 16, Mbappe did score in the 1-0 win in the home leg. In high-level football, nobody will make a place for you. Ego, self-love, isn’t just the caprice of stars. It’s also the will to give the best of yourself Mbappé’s parents made him take school seriously, and he was also a not-very-talented flautist at Bondy’s conservatory, but football came first. At AS Bondy, he says, “My father was my coach for 10 years. He helped construct the style of player I wanted to become. But I never felt the pressure of, ‘You have to become a footballer.’ Above all, it was a passion.”
Kylian Mbappe: 2022-23 PSG stats
Surely he’s now too big a player for the French league? He umms and aws: “France isn’t the best championship in the world, but it’s my responsibility, as a flagship player, to help the league grow.” Yet he may well leave this summer, to Real Madrid or England. The decision, perhaps the biggest he’ll face in his career, will be made inside his family. Almost uniquely for a star footballer, Mbappé doesn’t have an agent, just lawyers. The more you become an important person, the more duties you have. I’m no longer the little kid. I’m Kylian Mbappé The Mbappés sifted the countless offers and chose Monaco, where the route to the first team looked shortest. Mbappé arrived there, he says, “with my [footballing] baggage well filled.”
The following week was more of a slog against Monaco, his former club and one that he has had a good deal of success against in the past. But despite several good efforts on goal, the best he could manage was a shot against the post when he should have scored. A fan gives you enormous love,” says Mbappé carefully, “but sometimes maybe an excess of love, and he might not respect your intimacy. We give our lives to the people, because we give them pleasure every three days, and we give them our time. It’s impossible to hope for a normal life, but just a little respect for one’s private life isn’t too much to ask for, I think.” He played the full game against Benfica in Champions League matchday three without a goal contribution. Mbappe started on the bench as PSG beat Nice 2-1 last Saturday, with Hugo Ekitike getting the nod up front, but he scored after replacing the Reims-owned man to seal the victory.He understood that his early triumph had upset football’s all-important hierarchies. Returning to PSG, he immediately reassured Paris’s Brazilian star Neymar: “I’m not going to walk on your flowerbeds. I’ll be a candidate for the Ballon d’Or [the award for world’s best footballer] this year because you won’t be, but I promise I don’t want to take your place.” His next match was less high-profile as he failed to score or assist in a 1-0 win over Brest, before being subbed in the 78th minute of the game. Winning the World Cup made Mbappé a national hero. Does he consider himself a star? “I think so. If your face is everywhere in the city, everywhere in the world, that’s for sure. Being a star is a status, but it doesn’t make me a better person than others.”
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