The French striker signed a contract until 2029 with his new club, Real Madrid, on Tuesday, July 16, 2024. Kylian Mbappé, number 9 on his back, was presented to the 80,000 spectators who came to the Santiago Bernabeu stadium for him. A new adventure begins for him.
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The wedding awaited for so many years has finally come to fruition. Courted since adolescence by Real Madrid, a club he himself admires, Kylian Mbappé has joined the Spanish giant for good. After announcing on June 3 that his future would be written within the White House, the Frenchman signed his contract and was presented in Madrid on July 16 at midday.
As with the arrivals of other great players before, the Merengue club pulled out all the stops. In a Santiago Bernabeu stadium that had been refurbished in recent years, 80,000 spectators filled the stands to applaud their new jewel. Florentino Perez, the all-powerful president of Real Madrid, was of course present.
And half-surprise: Zinédine Zidane, Kylian Mbappé’s idol, also took part in the big party. A legendary player from 2001 to 2006, then a successful coach between 2016 and 2018 and between 2019 and 2021, Zidane warmly welcomed the striker.
“My life for this club, this badge”
Around 12:45 (local time), the fans applauded wildly when Kylian Mbappé, wearing the white Madrid jersey, entered the pitch. Accustomed to wearing mainly the number 7 at PSG and the number 10 in the French team, the child from Bondy inherits the number 9 at Real, the numbers 7 and 10 being worn respectively by Vinicius and Luka Modric. Invited to speak, the new Madrid native, a long-time polyglot, spoke in impeccable Spanish.
” Wow… It’s incredible to be here. I dreamed for years of playing for Real Madrid and today my dream came true. I’m a happy boy “, declared the 2018 world champion, under the moved and proud gaze of his parents, Fayza Lamari and Wilfried Mbappé. Kylian Mbappé thanked all the people who made his arrival possible, notably Florentino Pérez, and confided the other dream he nourishes: ” To live up to the history of this club. »
” I will give my life for this club and this badge. I am proud to realize my dream and become a player of the best club in the history of football. “, insisted the now ex-Parisian, who joins his compatriots Ferland Mendy, Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni.
Mbappé’s debut at Real is not for now. After theEuro 2024 where he reached the semi-finals despite having missed out on his personal competition (only one goal scored on a penalty), the captain of the French team will benefit from a few more days of rest. Madrid’s socios will have to wait a little longer before seeing the phenomenon at work. After a complicated and less brilliant last few months, Kylian Mbappé knows that he is expected to deliver at Real. At 25, he is at a turning point in his career. With the eyes of the world on him, the striker is reaching a new dimension.
Read alsoEuro 2024: Kylian Mbappé, the worrying lull before the Real Madrid challenge
Mbappé to Real Madrid: “Here, you always have to win,” warns Fernando Morientes
Having played for AS Monaco and Real Madrid, where he also wore the number 9 for a long time, Fernando Morientes spoke to Pierre Chaperon in the Spanish capital for RFI about the arrival of Kylian Mbappé at the Merengue. When you wear the Real Madrid shirt, it’s an extra pressure. Here, it’s not enough to draw, you always have to win. ” warns the former Spanish international.
” And the problem when you join Real Madrid is that history weighs heavily on you. If you have a bad year, it will be difficult to take advantage of it, but if you are good, it is the opposite. Then you understand the affection and passion of the fans for football. “, continues Fernando Morientes, who salutes ” the president’s good management » Florentino Perez « because it is not easy to sign a star like Mbappé “.