Why Kylian Mbappe Ignored His Mom to Snub Liverpool Transfer

Mbappé has candidly broken his silence on an intriguing topic that could have completely reshaped the modern history of Liverpool.

Jürgen Klopp (left) had Kylian Mbappé’s mom convinced. | Michael Regan/FIFA/Getty Images

Despite the express recommendation of his mother and co-representative, Fayza Lamari, Kylian Mbappé turned down Liverpool’s advances in 2017 to become “a star in my home town” with Paris Saint-Germain.

Almost a decade ago, Mbappé’s generational quality was already abundantly apparent. The jet-heeled teenager had just speared through Europe’s elite, leading Monaco to a shock Ligue 1 title while also racking up six knockout goals en route to the Champions League semifinals. “When I saw him the first time,” legendary former Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger reflected, “I said, ‘It’s Pelé!’”

It was readily apparent that Mbappé had already outgrown the modest surroundings of the Principality and the battle for his signature that summer was a fierce one. PSG would ultimately win the race, taking the France international on loan with an agreement to pay more than $200 million (€180 million) for his services the following summer.

However, as Mbappé has now confirmed for the first time, Liverpool were very much in the conversation.

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How Close Liverpool Came to Signing Mbappe

Kylian Mbappé already knew his ideal career path as a teenager. | Angel Martinez/Getty Images

In the battle to sign a normal 18-year-old, convincing the parent leading negotiations is usually a big part of the challenge. Jürgen Klopp quickly won over Lamari.

“My mom was a big fan of Jürgen Klopp and the favourite destination for my mom was Liverpool. She wanted me to go there,” Mbappé told The Athletic. “I didn’t listen because I wanted to play in my city, Paris. I didn’t want to leave my country before I was someone. But yes, my mom was always saying ‘Liverpool—you’re going to be there, playing at Anfield, it’s going to be insane for you.’ I was like, ‘O.K.!’

“She went there [for] the first step of the negotiations. She went to the city, she went to the stadium, she met the people. She was like, ‘It’s a wonderful club, everybody’s so kind, it’s a family club, a big club.’

“She went to Anfield and fell in love with it. She watched a few games alone, to feel the atmosphere, because she wanted to imagine me in this stadium.

“All the time we were talking. ‘What do you think, Mom?’ She’d say, ‘For me, you have to go to Liverpool. I said, ‘O.K., O.K., O.K.!’ because Jürgen Klopp was an amazing manager. I met him and had a wonderful relationship with him. I had big respect for him.”

Jürgen Klopp (left) tried to convince Kylian Mbappé to join Liverpool. | Michael Regan/FIFA/Getty Images

Mbappé was similarly impressed by the appeal of Liverpool and their charismatic manager, who personally set out the club’s pitch during a meeting on a private jet. Suspended 37,000 feet in the air while circling a landing strip in Blackpool, Klopp sold his vision.

“The most expensive non-transfer we [Liverpool] invested in,” the German coach reflected during German television coverage of the World Cup. “We flew from Blackpool to Nice. In Nice, the entire Mbappé family boarded a private jet with five rooms or something. We really went all out. Then we flew around in a circle, talked with the family, ate good food ... we couldn’t be seen. We flew in a circle. It was fantastic. And then he went to Paris!”

Klopp was fighting a losing battle. Mbappé’s heart was always set on returning to his hometown team.

“I said, ‘You don’t need to convince me. You’re Jürgen Klopp, it’s Liverpool, a great club, so of course if I’m here, I have some interest. But I have other things, other projects, that are also good,’” Mbappé would explain.

“I said to him, ‘Whatever decision I take is going to be a good decision because we are talking about some of the biggest clubs in the world.’

“It’s a funny story. But in the end I took the decision to go to PSG because for me, born and raised in Paris, there was no better feeling than to show I could be a star in my home town.”

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How Liverpool Could Have Lined Up With Kylian Mbappe

Kylian Mbappé likely would have taken Mohamed Salah’s spot. | FotMob

“You’re a genius at football, Kylian,” Mbappé’s mother told him in the summer of 2017 when he moved to PSG. “Aren’t you going to be bored in Ligue 1?” He certainly wouldn’t have been bored in the Premier League.

That period between 2017 and 2018 was the most transformative of Klopp’s Liverpool. In a little over a year, some of the most astute deals in the modern history of the sport transformed the Reds from battling for Champions League qualification to European titles. However, Mbappé’s potential arrival would have likely prevented the first of those: Mohamed Salah’s signing.

After missing out on Mbappé, Liverpool opted for the far more afforable option of purchasing Roma’s exciting Egyptian. Salah would chisel out his place in the pantheon of all-time Liverpool greats, winning every major trophy available before leaving as the club’s third all-time top scorer. It’s impossible to know if Mbappé would have been able to match Salah’s staggering output, although the evidence of his time as “a star” at PSG and Real Madrid suggests he may have struggled to replicate his work rate, which was such a key factor of Klopp’s teams.

Had Mbappé arrived for such a record-shattering fee in 2017, Liverpool’s ability to sign the rest of their spin may have been impacted. The exit of Philippe Coutinho in January 2018 effectively paved the way for the purchase of Virgil van Dijk that month as well as Alisson the following summer. Even without Mbappé, Liverpool still won the Champions League and Premier League under Klopp, while reaching two more European finals and a pair of top-flight runners-up finishes.

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