The 22-year-old French striking sensation endured a fairly turbulent summer

The 22-year-old French striking sensation endured a fairly turbulent summer littered with intense transfer speculation touting him with a move to La Liga giants Real Madrid

Trying to entice the youngest World Cup final goal-scorer since Pele to your club does not come cheap – just ask Real Madrid.

Los Blancos peppered Paris Saint-Germain with a number of bids in an attempt to force their hand and let one of their many superstars in Kylian Mbappe fulfil his boyhood dream of plying his trade at the Santiago Bernabeu.

For the first time since the transfer saga of the summer, the man in question has shed light on his thought process throughout the drama – including an admission that he “thought his PSG adventure was over.”

Speaking to French outlet L’Équipe, the striker did not shy away from revealing the intimate details surrounding crisis talks with the PSG hierarchy as well as the tug of war over his future which proved “draining” on the 22-year-old.

Pressed on Real Madrid’s interest, Mbappe explained: “Real made an offer [reports throughout the summer suggested multiple were made].

“When I say that lots of things were heard, I’m talking about something else – people said that I turned down six or seven renewal offers, no way! People were saying that I didn’t want to talk to Leonardo, even though it’s the president [ Nasser Al-Khelaifi ] who wanted to take things over.

“When I’m told to speak with the president, I’m not going to say no. People were saying I was planning on messing around in the dressing room – again, not at all.”

In the wake of Madrid’s interest, once Mbappe’s preference was made common knowledge – the Parc Des Princes faithful began to turn on their talisman.

Some players may have grown to resent their own supporters in that situation, the kind of reaction that would only push one closer to the exit door – but Mbappe empathised with the frustration of the fans.

“I took the issue in a different way. I told myself that in their position, I would have booed as well. In this transfer, who knew what? We heard a lot of things.

“I didn’t say to myself, ‘ After all I’ve done, they boo me’, no, I took it as a sign of affection. They didn’t want me to leave, that means I am more important. I was clear with myself over this situation.”

Though the allure of Real Madrid is obvious – few, if any clubs in world football boast the kind of stature and prestige of the Spanish icons, their current state has led many to question why Mbappe is so desperate to join.

Madrid are arguably in their worst condition of the last two decades, battling financial troubles without a clear ‘Galactico’ in their side.

However, Mbappe’s affinity with the Spaniard’s is clearly strong, revealing that “I am attached to Paris, and if I had left this summer it would have only been for Real.”

The forward has claimed that leaving PSG seemed like the most glaringly obvious next step to take in his career.

“I thought that my adventure [with PSG] was over. I wanted to discover something else. I’d been in the French league six or seven years.

“I’ve given what I tried to at Paris and I think I’ve done it well. To arrive at 18 post-youth development and do everything I have, I think that’s something remarkable.

“But everyone is free to draw the conclusions they want but that’s my assessment. Leaving was the logical next step.”

As is often the case with potential mega-money transfers, Mbappe kept his cards close to his chest when asked if he is certainly leaving come the end of the season.

“I’ve been in football long enough now to know that yesterday’s truth is not necessarily today’s, nor tomorrow’s.

“If I was told that Messi was going to play at PSG, I wouldn’t have believed it, so you never know what’s going to happen.”

While Mbappe may not be sure of his immediate future, his status at the top of European football is certain – whether it be in the blue and red of PSG, or famous white and gold of Real Madrid.