He said yes”: £89 million striker already informed his families and friends that his January transfer to Arsenal is almost a DONE DEAL

 

Arsenal’s secret transfer meeting to sign Kylian Mbappe – ‘I was at his parents’ home’

Arsene Wenger went to great lengths to try and convince Kylian Mbappe and his parents that Arsenal was the right club for him, long before he signed his first professional contract.

Arsene Wenger secretly met with Kylian Mbappe’s parents at their family home in his attempts to sign him for Arsenal.

Legendary boss Wenger had spotted the world-class potential of fellow Frenchman Mbappe at a young age. The then-teenager had been accepted into Clairefontaine, their national football centre, following in the footsteps of former Gunners forwards Thierry Henry and Nicolas Anelka.

Well aware of the talent he had, Wenger made a personal plea to bring him to England – returning to his homeland to speak face-to-face with Mbappe’s mum Fayza and dad Wilfried in 2013.

Recalling the interaction on new BBC documentary Mbappe, he said: “You know at one point I tried to convince him to come to Arsenal. I was at his home with his parents. He was a happy boy. He just wanted to play football and had the passion for the game.”

Wenger was far from the only interested party. But French football journalist Julien Laurens explained how all of the European giants stood no chance, as it was always the intention for him to remain in familiar surroundings.

Sending Kylian to develop his game outside of France was never part of the plan,” Laurens claimed. “Clubs from all over Europe would say ‘come to us’. It was never about the prestige of the club, because he could have gone to Real Madrid, to Chelsea, to Arsenal, to Manchester United. It was always about good academy, good coaches, and in the end he chose Monaco.”

Wenger didn’t give up there, again reigniting his interest in the future World Cup winner after he’d began setting the world on fire at Monaco. Discussions re-opened three years later in 2016.

But his advances were again unsuccessful as he signed his first professional contract with Monaco, with former Arsenal star-turned-scout Gilles Grimandi describing it as “the biggest disappointment” of his 15 years in the role.