Florentino Perez’s message for Mbappe after Real Madrid’s Champions League win

Real Madrid have lifted yet another Champions League and they’ve done so in Paris, the city that celebrated Kylian Mbappe’s PSG contract renewal just seven days previously. While that is still a blow for the Spanish club, nobody at Real Madrid is thinking about the 23-year-old right now.

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For Florentino Perez, last Saturday was a tough day as he received a WhatsApp from Mbappe to confirm he wouldn’t be coming while the Real Madrid president was in Belgrade for the EuroLeague final in basketball, which Los Blancos lost. Spool forward one week and Perez was on the pitch at the Stade de France celebrating his sixth Champions League trophy, equalling the legendary president Santiago Bernabeu.

In a post-match interview, Perez was asked about Mbappe and he had a clear message, responding: "Today, Mbappé doesn't exist. Today, what exists is the party of Real Madrid, its players and its fans."

A special night for Florentino Perez

The Real Madrid president also spoke about his current players, heaping praise on the 2021/22 squad. He said: “We’ve got very good players, they all deserve credit. I’m delighted, just like all the fans will be. We’ve fought and worked hard all season to get here. It’s been a good season in general. Won deservedly won LaLiga and we celebrated together. This is all down to the players, the manager and the fans.”

Thibaut Courtois was singled out for praise by the club president, who said: “Courtois has had a spectacular season, he’s a true Madridista and, for me, the best goalkeeper in the world and that’s why we brought him here. Real Madrid is a way of life. It has values and sometimes unpleasantness, but this communion between players and fans is important.”

On Carlo Ancelotti, Perez added: “He's a good leader and has very good knowledge of the players’ psychology, Real Madrid and football. He’s right when he says that he believes that the biggest difference between Real Madrid and other clubs is that as well as being good professionals, the players are true Madridistas.”