Mbappé Reveals He Was ‘Close’ to Joining Liverpool Before Choosing PSG in 2016

Kylian Mbappé said he came close to signing for Liverpool as a teenager in 2016 before ultimately choosing to join Paris Saint-Germain, the Real Madrid forward and France captain revealed in comments reported on September 23, 2026. Mbappé, now 27, said his mother had favored the move to Merseyside at the time, but he opted to stay in his home city of Paris instead.

Direct answer: Mbappé has confirmed for the first time in detail that Liverpool made a serious push to sign him from Monaco in 2016, when he was 18, including flying him and his family to Anfield on a private jet, but he turned the move down to remain in Paris. The revelation comes in the same week Mbappé missed France training on September 22, 2026, due to flu-like symptoms, and just days after he ended his roughly two-decade partnership with Nike to sign with Swiss sportswear brand On.

What Mbappé Said About the Liverpool Pursuit

Speaking in comments reported on September 23, 2026, Mbappé said he was “close” to becoming a Liverpool player in 2016, when Jürgen Klopp‘s side made a concerted effort to sign him from AS Monaco. “It was close, yes,” Mbappé said, according to the report. He was 18 years old at the time and had just broken into Monaco’s first team, catching the attention of clubs across Europe.

Mbappé said his mother, Fayza Lamari, was particularly taken with the idea of a move to England. “My mum fell in love with Anfield,” he said, describing how the Liverpool visit left an impression on his family during the recruitment process. Liverpool, under Klopp at the time, arranged a private jet and hospitality for Mbappé and his family as part of their courtship, according to the report.

Despite the family’s enthusiasm for Liverpool, Mbappé said his own preference was to stay close to home. “I wanted to play in my city,” he said, explaining that the pull of representing a Paris club ultimately outweighed the appeal of the Premier League move. He signed for Paris Saint-Germain instead, in a deal that included an option for a permanent transfer worth approximately €180 million, equivalent to around £165.7 million.

Who, What, When, Where, Why

• Who: Kylian Mbappé, 27, Real Madrid forward and France national team captain
• What: Revealed he nearly signed for Liverpool in 2016 before choosing Paris Saint-Germain
• When: The comments were reported on September 23, 2026; the events described took place in 2016
• Where: The comments were made public this week, with the original recruitment episode centered on Liverpool’s Anfield stadium and Monaco’s training base
• Why: Mbappé chose to stay in his home city of Paris over signing for Liverpool, despite his mother’s preference for the English club

From Monaco to PSG: The 2016 Transfer Context

Mbappé’s breakthrough at Monaco during the 2016-17 season made him one of the most sought-after teenage talents in world football. Liverpool were among the clubs that moved fastest to try to sign him, with Klopp’s recruitment team pursuing the forward and his family directly. According to the report detailing Mbappé’s comments, the Liverpool effort included flying the player and his relatives to Merseyside and hosting them with tailored hospitality, an approach that clearly resonated with his mother even if it did not sway Mbappé himself.

Instead, Mbappé completed a move to Paris Saint-Germain, initially on loan with an obligation to buy structured as an option, before the deal was made permanent at a fee reported at around €180 million (£165.7 million). That transfer fee remains one of the most significant in the sport’s transfer history and helped cement PSG’s ambitions to build a squad capable of competing for the Champions League. Mbappé went on to spend seven seasons at the Parc des Princes before joining Real Madrid.

The revelation adds a new layer of detail to a transfer saga that has long been part of Mbappé’s origin story as a player, but the specifics of Liverpool’s pursuit — including the private jet and his mother’s reaction to Anfield — had not previously been laid out by Mbappé himself in this level of detail.

Mbappé’s Current Status: Real Madrid and France Captaincy

The Liverpool admission arrives at a moment when Mbappé, now firmly established as a Real Madrid striker, is also captain of the France national team. His comments about the 2016 transfer saga were not framed as regret about his career path, but rather as a personal recollection of a pivotal decision made when he was still a teenager weighing his first major move away from Monaco.

Mbappé has continued to be a central figure in individual honors conversations. In comments reported by Reuters on September 11, 2026, Mbappé said he still believed he could win the Ballon d’Or despite what was described as a “barren season” by his own standards. He has also been mentioned alongside France teammate Ousmane Dembélé as a contender for the award, with ABC News reporting on September 21, 2026, that Mbappé brushed off suggestions of tension between the two players as both remain in Ballon d’Or contention.

Mbappé Misses France Training With Flu-Like Symptoms

The Liverpool revelation surfaced in the same week Mbappé was absent from France national team training. Reuters reported on September 22, 2026, that Mbappé missed a training session with France due to flu-like symptoms, a detail also confirmed by the Associated Press ahead of France’s upcoming Nations League fixtures. His availability for France’s next matches had not been fully clarified in the immediate aftermath of the missed session, though the absence was attributed specifically to illness rather than injury.

France, managed by Zinédine Zidane, have been preparing for Nations League commitments with Mbappé expected to be a central figure in the squad’s attacking setup. Any extended absence due to illness would be closely watched given his importance to both club and country in the current international window.

Off the Pitch: Mbappé Ends Nike Partnership, Signs With On

Alongside the sporting headlines, Mbappé’s commercial profile has also shifted significantly this month. Reuters reported on September 18, 2026, that Mbappé ended a partnership with Nike that had lasted roughly 20 years, dating back to his childhood as a sponsored youth player. In its place, Mbappé signed with On, the Swiss sportswear brand, as first reported the same day.

CNN reported that On will make Mbappé a global ambassador for the brand and have him work directly with its product development teams, a role that goes beyond a traditional endorsement deal. Reuters characterized the signing as part of On’s broader push into football boots and soccer-specific product lines, an area the brand has been building out as it expands beyond its running-shoe origins.

The switch from Nike, one of the most recognizable partnerships in football for nearly two decades, to a comparatively newer entrant in football footwear marks one of the most notable athlete-brand moves in the sport this year, given Mbappé’s global commercial profile as one of the most marketable players in the game.

Timeline: Key Mbappé Developments in September 2026

Why This Matters: A Rare Window Into a Career-Defining Decision

Transfer sagas involving elite teenage talents are common in modern football, but it is rare for a player of Mbappé’s stature to revisit the emotional and family dynamics behind a decision made a decade earlier. His account of his mother’s reaction to Anfield, and his own stated desire to “play in my city,” offers insight into how personal and geographic factors can outweigh even a determined pursuit from one of Europe’s biggest clubs.

For Liverpool, the story is a reminder of a near-miss on a player who would go on to become one of the most decorated forwards of his generation, winning trophies with PSG before his move to Real Madrid. Klopp, who left Liverpool before this revelation surfaced, had overseen the club’s recruitment strategy during the period when the Mbappé pursuit took place.

The story also lands amid a broader news cycle around Mbappé this month, spanning his health status ahead of international fixtures, his commercial rebrand with On, and his continued positioning in Ballon d’Or discussions. Taken together, these developments underline Mbappé’s continued relevance across both sporting and commercial storylines as the 2026-27 season progresses.

What to Watch Next

• Whether Mbappé recovers in time to feature in France’s upcoming Nations League fixtures after missing training on September 22, 2026
• How Mbappé’s new partnership with On develops, including any football boot product launches tied to his role as global ambassador
• Whether Mbappé’s Ballon d’Or candidacy gains momentum following his September 11, 2026, comments about believing he can still win the award
• Any further comments from Mbappé or Liverpool figures about the 2016 transfer pursuit, given the fresh public interest in the story

The full details of Mbappé’s comments were first reported by the BBC, with his flu-related absence from France training confirmed by Reuters on September 22, 2026. Reuters also reported the September 18, 2026, end of his Nike partnership and his signing with On, details corroborated by CNN, which detailed his new role as a global ambassador for the brand.

Limitations of This Report

This article is based on Mbappé’s own reported comments about the 2016 Liverpool pursuit and separate, contemporaneous reporting on his health status and commercial deal with On. Liverpool has not issued its own public statement responding to Mbappé’s account of the 2016 recruitment effort at the time of publication, and the precise financial terms of his On partnership have not been disclosed.

Sources

• BBC — bbc.co.uk
• Reuters — reuters.com
• CNN — cnn.com
• Kylian Mbappe reveals he was ‘close’ to joining Liverpool in 2016 — bbc.com
• "I was on the verge of joining Liverpool": Jürgen Klopp came within a whisker of managing an absolute superstar | Goal.com — goal.com

Photo: Bryan Berlin, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons