Dismissed from PSG a few hours after the extension of Kylian Mbappé in May 2022, Leonardo was opposed to the idea of extending the Frenchman.
The relationship between Kylian Mbappé and the
PSG ended in very bad terms. Currently in a financial dispute with the Parisian club, the 25-year-old striker decided to join free on Real
Madrid this summer after seven seasons spent with the Rouge & Bleu. However, his Madrid adventure could have started two years earlier, in the summer of 2022. But against all expectations, the 2018 World champion had extended to Paris for two more seasons.
“My story with Paris is untouchable”
A decision that was not in line with the vision of
Leonardosports director at the time, as he explained in an interview with Figaro. He was even in favor of selling the player in the summer of 2021:
“I was against it, at the level that was done. Always. From the start. I even think it was supposed to be sold at the end of the 2020-2021 season, when the PSG got an offer from
Real Madrid and he only had one year left on his contract. […] How is it manageable afterwards? If you lose a player, it's annoying, but the club is not going to die. What great institution collapsed by losing a player? None. It may take a while, but you always get back up. I was a player, but nothing can ever be more important than a club. » The Brazilian leader was finally fired from his post a few hours after the announcement of the extension of Kylian Mbappé.
In this interview, Leonardo also looked back on his two periods as sports director of the PSG (2011-2013
et 2019-2022). “I remember all the moments. You know, when Paris come pick me up, I'm a trainer at Inter MilanI have to build the future and they call me to tell me that the club
Paris will be redeemed, that the revolution will be enormous, with the will to shine in C1. I arrived at
Paris July 14, the same when I was a player. The Championship started on August 6 and we recruited 9-10 players in 20 days. It was wonderful. We leave the
Champions League against the great
Barcelona of Messi without losing this season (2-2, 1-1). The second passage also remains fabulous for me. We make a final of Champions Leaguethe only one so far. » And to conclude: “But beyond all that, my story with
Paris is untouchable. And I'm not saying that to open the door to I don't know what. This is my heart speaking. » A few days ago, the former Parisian leader indicated that he no longer saw himself evolving in the role of sports director or coach. On the other hand, in this interview with Figaro,
Leonardo repeatedly recalled his desire to position himself “in a more institutional way” in a club.
Concerning the recent turning point taken by the PSG,
Leonardo believes that the Parisian management has taken the right path: “Now the project is different, with young people, you are building for the future. These are less glamorous moments, but very important. I was complicit in this idea and I always said that a team is not built around one person. You can't do that. You can't do this anymore. The club must always keep its line, its philosophy and not be influenced by a decision. That's my opinion. I fought for this. This takes time and patience. The team is very competitive, even if for the Champions League
you are not going to say that the PSG is favorite this year, but you are respected, with a coach who builds. The path is interesting. »
