The China Mail - PSG withhold wages due to Mbappe amid financial dispute - sources

PSG's decision to withhold Mbappe's salary is related to an agreement between the two parties made last year, at the start of the season, when the player accepted to waive part of a bonus due to him, the source said.

However, the source stated the talks between the club and the France captain were "relaxed" and that there was hope of reaching "a positive conclusion".

"Everything is being sorted out," the source said without confirming the amount of money due to Mbappe.

However, another source contacted by AFP said PSG had also decided not to pay Mbappe a bonus owed, meaning the amount of money in question totalled some 80 million euros ($86.8m), confirming figures reported by sports daily L'Equipe.

The same source said the club had decided not to make the payments without warning Mbappe and without an agreement being reached between the parties.

Neither Mbappe's entourage nor PSG immediately responded when contacted by AFP for comment.

Mbappe's contract expires on June 30 and he has already confirmed he will leave PSG after seven years, with Real Madrid expected to be his next destination.

The two camps admitted at the beginning of this year Mbappe had agreed to waive part of a huge bonus that was due to him in order to be reinstated to the PSG squad after he was frozen out of the team at the beginning of the season.

The total amount of these bonuses is between 60 and 70 million euros, according to a source close to the club.

Waiving that sum was seen as a way of Mbappe helping PSG recoup some money given that they will not receive a transfer fee for the 25-year-old when he departs.

However, another source said Mbappe did in fact receive that bonus in February.

Mbappe signed his last contract with PSG in 2022, a two-year deal worth some 72 million euros before tax.

On top of that there was a stratospheric signing-on fee of 150 million euros, to be paid in three instalments, and a loyalty bonus of 70 million euros for the first year and 80 million euros for the second year.

In addition, he would have received a further 90 million euros had he agreed to take up the option of staying for a third year, according to the daily Le Parisien.

Z.Huang--ThChM