Former Paris Saint-Germain manager Unai Emery has revealed how he deferred Kylian Mbappe from joining Real Madrid during his time in charge of the Ligue 1 club.
Emery was PSG manager when Mbappe transferred from Monaco for £130million in 2018 after an initial one-year loan with the Parisian side, but only spent a year with the forward after being dismissed at the end of the 2017-2018 campaign.
During that time, Emery managed to tie down wantaway Mbappe - who had picked up interest from Real Madrid after scoring 21 goals and registering 15 assists during his first season as a permanent member of the PSG squad.
Mbappe - who has shown no interest in extending his current contract at PSG - has been strongly linked with a move to the Spanish capital next summer.
However, it has been revealed that the World Cup winner could have already agreed terms with the Bernabeu side if it wasn't for Emery.
Emery said Mbappe was 'excited' about the prospect of playing for Real Madrid while under his tutelage at PSG, but claims a conversation between himself, the forward and his father encouraged him to stay at the club.
He told Marca: 'When I was in Paris, Mbappe was seriously thinking about going to Real Madrid because he likes them a lot, he was very excited to play for Madrid,' Emery stated.
'I didn't want him to leave and I had a conversation with him and his father to convince him that he had to stay, leaving PSG is not easy.'
Mbappe remains under contract at the Parc des Princes until June 2022 but it is believed the forward could make the move to Zinedine Zidane's side next year.
Madrid have previously tried to sign Mbappe on two separate occasions - once when he was 14 and then again when he set the world alight at Monaco.
It is believed Madrid could sign Mbappe for as little as £91m if PSG are unable to convince him to sign a new contract.
With four goals in four game so far this season, Mbappe will be hoping to recreate such form for his childhood idol, Zidane, next season.
Source: m.allfootballapp.com