Kylian Mbappé Sues PSG For ‘Moral Harassment’

Kylian Mbappé has accused Paris Saint-Germain of moral harassment in a legal filing, the Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed on Tuesday.

The Real Madrid star is at odds with his former club, arguing PSG owes him €55 million ($61 million) in unpaid wages.

Mbappé is also unhappy with the way he was treated by the Ligue 1 club when he was sidelined before the 2023-24 season, following his decision not to extend his club contract.

The prosecutor’s office said Mbappé is “denouncing the ‘lofting’ he claimed to have been subjected to at Paris Saint-Germain.”

The word lofting is used in France to describe a practice that involves isolating or leaving a player out of the main squad for sporting, administrative or disciplinary reasons.

Mbappé joined Real Madrid last summer on a free transfer after scoring a club-record 256 goals in seven years at PSG, who won the Champions League without him this year.

Mbappé’s relationship with PSG ended amid deep tension, with some fans booing him in his last home game at Parc des Princes.

PSG felt let down by Mbappé after offering him the most lucrative contract in club history when he signed in 2022, but Mbappé was reportedly frustrated because he felt that promises to sign key players had not been kept. When he signed in 2022, he was paraded in front of fans holding up a jersey with 2025 on it.

Mbappé was reportedly annoyed because the contract was only until 2024, with a player’s option for an extra season.

Mbappé stunned PSG in June 2023 by informing the club he would not take the option for an extra year. With his contract effectively entering its final year, PSG found itself in a position where it needed to sell Mbappé’s contract to avoid losing him for free when the contract expired.

After telling the club he would not extend his contract, Mbappé was left out of the squad for a preseason tour to Japan and South Korea and was forced to train away from the first team. PSG said they would rather move him than let him leave for free in 2024, but he rejected a €300m ($351.4 million) move to Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal.

PSG left Mbappé out of the opening league game of that season, but he soon returned to the lineup following talks with the club.

Mbappé’s legal team stated in April that it would take action against PSG for harassment due to the way he was treated at the time.