Macron: “I spoke to Mbappé to advise him to stay, my role is to defend the country”

The president of France, Emmanuel Macron, has confirmed that he called Paris Saint-Germain striker Kylian Mbappé to advise him to stay with the Parisian team, since his “role” is to “defend the country”, and has stated that the investigations into the incidents that occurred in the Champions League final continue and that they will try to “compensate” those affected as soon as possible.

“I had a conversation with Kylian Mbappé to advise him to stay in France. We talked about it in an informal and friendly way. It is the role of a president to defend his country,” he said in an interview with the French regional press.

After announcing his renewal, Mbappé assured that he communicated “often” with the president of the French Republic and that he himself called him to “stay”, something that, according to him, made him understand that his continuity in the country and at PSG it transcended sports.

Macron, a fan of Olympique de Marseille, affirmed, however, that he did not try to influence, only to explain the situation. “I assure you that I am not involved in any signing! Like any citizen when it comes to sport, I want to see a good game and support a team, in this case Olympique de Marseille”, he explained.

On the other hand, the French president spoke again about the incidents that occurred before the Champions League final at the Stade de Franceand was “outraged” to see the images of fans sprayed with tear gas. “I was, like all of you, outraged by the disorder in all its forms and by what we saw. I like order and calm,” he said.

“I think of the families who received pushes, who have not been able to access the places they had paid for, so I would like us to be able to compensate them as soon as possible. I also want transparency. I asked the government to clarify what happened, to determine the responsibilities and to explain them in detail to our compatriots, the English and the Spanish,” he said.