Perez says Mbappe must have ‘changed his dream’ by snubbing Madrid

Florentino Perez says Kylian Mbappe must have “changed his dream” by rejecting Real Madrid to stay at Paris Saint-Germain.

Mbappe had been expected to join Los Blancos as a free agent, but signed a blockbuster new three-year deal with PSG last month.

Madrid president Perez says the Mbappe who snubbed the LaLiga and European champions is not the same character he wanted to bring to the Spanish capital.

He told El Chiringuito: “Mbappe is already forgotten. We have had a perfect season and we will continue to work to get the best players.

“His dream was to play at Real Madrid, we wanted to do it last August and they didn’t let him leave, he kept saying he wanted to play at Madrid and like 15 days before he changed the situation.

“This is not the Mbappe I wanted to bring, he is another one, who must have changed his dream. He changes, he is offered other things, he is pressured and he is already another footballer.

“There is no one at Real Madrid above the club. He is a great player, he can win more than others, but it is a collective sport and we have values and principles that we cannot change.

“The Mbappe who was going to come here is not this one. If it is, I prefer him to stay at PSG. I want the one with the dream.”

Perez did not rule out making another move for Mbappe when he comes to the end of his new deal.

“Impossible in three years? In three years’ time we’ll all be bald?” he added.

“This Mbappe is not my Mbappe, who refuses to do a publicity stunt with his national team… I don’t want that. It could have been a slip of the tongue, but I think he was mistaken.”

Erling Haaland was also linked with Madrid before joining Manchester City, but Perez says Los Blancos did not need the Norway striker when they have Karim Benzema.

He added: “We have the best nine in the world and we weren’t going to bring in Haaland to have him on the bench, right? Clause [Haaland reportedly has a release clause in his City contract] in two years?

“I don’t know. We have no interest now other than to build the new team with the youngsters we have and some reinforcement.”