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PARIS (AP) — Kylian Mbappe’s relationship with Paris Saint-Germain started with great fanfare but is ending amid ongoing tensions and without a Champions League trophy.

Mbappe joined as a teenage phenom from Monaco in 2017 in a deal worth 180 million euros ($194 million). On Sunday, the 25-year-old superstar played his last home game for PSG and scored in a 3-1 loss to Toulouse.

He was loudly jeered by sections of the crowd at Parc des Princes when his name was announced — two days after finally making it official he is leaving — though Mbappe got a warmer welcome from other PSG fans.

As the soccer world discussed his imminent departure on Friday, French champion PSG did not comment on the matter.

The late-evening announcement by Mbappe may have taken PSG by surprise since it was in a video posted on X, and not through the club’s communication department.

Between then and the Sunday night kickoff, there were more than 20 posts on PSG’s official feed on X.

Those included an exclusive look at next season’s home strip, an item on a betting site, a clip of PSG’s women’s team reaching the French Cup final, and kickoff times for the match in different parts of the world — but nothing on Mbappe.

No tribute was paid to him by the club during Sunday’s game, either, albeit not the last match of the season.

It was left to the ultra supporters from the CUP, or Paris Ultras Collective, to honor him with a banner and a giant tifo in his image.

The fracture between the cash-rich Qatari-owned club and its 256-goal record scorer appears to run deep.

Here’s a look at how relations deteriorated.

New contract

PSG may be feeling let down by Mbappe after offering him the most lucrative contract in the club’s history when he signed a new contract in 2022.

But Mbappe was frustrated because he felt promises to sign key players — notably a top-class center forward like Robert Lewandowski so he could play in his favored position wide left — were not kept.

When he signed the new deal, he was paraded in front of fans holding up a jersey with 2025 on it. Mbappe was reportedly annoyed about this, because the contract was until 2024 with the option for an extra year.

Offer declined

Mbappe stunned PSG in June last year by informing the club he would not take the option for an extra year. With his contract effectively into its final year, it put PSG in the position of needing to sell Mbappe to avoid losing him for free when the contract expired.

PSG insisted he would be sold but Mbappe wanted to see out the final year, so the club flexed its muscle by leaving him out of the pre-season tour to Japan in late July.

Al-Hilal came in with a world record $332 million bid, but Mbappe was not interested and reportedly refused to meet with representatives from the Saudi club in Paris.

Fallout and tensions

After being left out of the preseason tour, Mbappe posted a photo of himself online after training with some fringe players, stopping to sign autographs outside the club’s training complex.

The standoff continued when Mbappe was dropped for this season’s opening league game, watching from the stands as PSG drew 0-0.

With Lionel Messi gone and Neymar on his way to join Saudi club Al-Hilal, PSG coach Luis Enrique simply could not afford to keep overlooking Mbappe. He returned in the next league game and scored a penalty.

Time to leave

Relations appeared to be repaired for a while, but they took another turn for the worse when Mbappe informed club president Nasser Al Khelaifi in mid-February that he was leaving, although he did not go public until Friday.

In between times, Mbappe’s relationship with Enrique — knowing his best player would be leaving — reportedly became more tense.

Enrique showed his authority in recent weeks by either putting Mbappe on the bench or taking him off during important games.

Lower status

Mbappe’s near-untouchable status at PSG was suddenly in question.

When Enrique replaced him midway through the second half against bitter rival Marseille on March 31, a surprised Mbappe appeared to mutter something negative as he walked off.

Enrique said he was rotating Mbappe to keep him fresher for the bigger games. They jumped into each other’s arms after PSG knocked Barcelona out of the Champions League quarterfinals, with Mbappe scoring twice in the second leg.

But resting Mbappe made no difference in the semifinals against Borussia Dortmund, with Mbappe failing to score as PSG lost both games 1-0.

Once again, PSG fell short in European soccer’s elite club competition.

Mbappe’s last PSG match will be on May 25 in the French Cup final against Lyon.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

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The Champions League semifinal stage is in the books. Before we look ahead to the showpiece match at Wembley, we’re reviewing the dramatic action that left Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund as the last two teams standing in Europe’s premier club competition.

Winner: Joselu

It’s not always the big names who step up.

Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo fruitlessly combined for nine shots at the Santiago Bernabeu. Toni Kroos crafted four big opportunities. Despite his best efforts to find space and out-wrestle defenders, Jude Bellingham couldn’t muster a shot on target across both matches against Bayern Munich.

Instead of those superstars, the difference-maker was someone who was a fan, wearing his Real Madrid shirt, at the 2022 Champions League final. The hero was a forward who could only muster 10 Premier League goals over four seasons on the books of Stoke City and then Newcastle United.

Nobody would’ve guessed it before hand, but this was The Joselu Game.

Manuel Neuer was producing one of his best performances of the past decade before Joselu, in his role as a poacher, anticipated an error in the 88th minute. Joselu was running ahead of his marker, Eric Dier, before Vinicius’ shot spilled from Neuer’s arms, and Bayern’s resistance was broken by a confident right-footed slap past the beleaguered goalkeeper.

The nomadic striker would go one better. With the semifinal locked at 3-3 on aggregate, Joselu was maintaining his position on the last defender. He was waiting for scraps, but he was served something much more substantial on 90 minutes when Antonio Rudiger pinged a ball across the six-yard box. Joselu was beyond the defenders when the delivery arrived, and the offside flag was raised. However, a VAR review determined both he and Rudiger were indeed onside, and his finish was legal. Joselu, a selfless, unheralded figure whose loan deal from Espanyol expires next month, was miraculously sending his club to the Champions League final.

“Joselu deserves it all, he has been an amazing squad member this season,” Bellingham told TNT Sports post-match, according to BBC Sport.

Strangely, another former Stoke flop was on the pitch during Joselu’s unexpected starring role. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was brought on as a late substitute for Harry Kane, and in a stark contrast from Joselu’s new hero status, his introduction is already widely tipped as the moment the tie slipped from Bayern’s grasp.

Losers: Tuchel and the Bayern attackers

Thomas Tuchel said Kane “couldn’t keep going” due to back pain, hence his 84th-minute swap for Choupo-Moting. If that’s the case, it would be harsh to highlight that as the precise moment Bayern’s first trophy-less campaign since 2012 was confirmed.

It would also absolve the Bayern attackers of blame for what was ultimately an unimaginative and toothless effort.

It’s in Kane’s remit to fling balls out wide to his speedier teammates – deliveries that risk possession – but his passing accuracy of below 45% was a hindrance for his team. For the most part, he was easily contained by Rudiger and Nacho. He recorded the assist for Alphonso Davies’ goal, but that was a technicality, really. The Canadian did all the heavy lifting, scoring what was essentially a solo stunner.

Serge Gnabry could only last 26 minutes before his injury issues caught up with him, and by that time he had already shown his rustiness as he slammed a cross out of Kane’s reach. Jamal Musiala was absent for large portions of Wednesday’s match. Leroy Sane, meanwhile, was invisible in attack and barely supported right-back Joshua Kimmich in the defensive effort against Vinicius.

“We started with a front four and all four has to go out with injury or cramp,” Tuchel explained after the soul-crushing defeat.

That’s true, but the outgoing tactician can’t use that to wipe his hands of all responsibility. Before he was forced into the Kane switch, he invited Real Madrid’s late onslaught by introducing Kim Min-jae for Sane, effectively forcing his own team to retreat into a defensive shell and hope for the best.

That’s a risky move at the best of times. Doing it while nursing a one-goal lead against Real Madrid, in the Champions League, at the Bernabeu? That’s willing a late collapse.

Winner: Aleksandar Pavlovic

The defeat will sting for Bayern Munich fans, but they should take solace in that they have a genuine phenom in midfield.

Tuchel has expressed his displeasure at the club’s failure to sign a No. 6 numerous times during his 13-and-a-half months at the helm. Joao Palhinha’s transfer from Fulham collapsed last summer and Tuchel has never fully appreciated the midfielders he inherited. He wanted to rely on somebody to screen his defense and provide a springboard for his attack.

Leon Goretzka could do neither of those things in the opening fixture against Real Madrid. He was substituted at halftime. His replacement was Raphael Guerreiro, who’s spent most of his career as a left-back, and he comfortably outclassed Goretzka with better ball retention and defensive graft in his half-match shift.

However, an injury to Guerreiro meant Tuchel had to rethink his midfield duo for the trip to Real Madrid, and Aleksandar Pavlovic was paired with Konrad Laimer.

Pavlovic, who only turned 20 last week, was authoritative in the middle. Only Kroos, Dier, and Nacho touched the ball more times than the youngster, who didn’t misplace a pass in the opening half, made a crucial interception to deny a ball through to Jude Bellingham, and immediately upped the tempo and instigated an attack with a smart pass slid between Rodrygo and Kroos.

He’s a gift for whoever’s in charge at Bayern next season.

Loser: Luis Enrique

It wasn’t an approach you’d associate with a team trying to overturn a one-goal deficit in front of an encouraging home crowd. Paris Saint-Germain started the second leg tentatively, plagued by the fear of conceding rather than consumed by the will to level the tie, and therefore played the opening half with the aggression and tempo of a gooey Coldplay ballad.

PSG’s performance picked up in the second stanza – it had to – but their skirmish with Borussia Dortmund was lost over the preceding 135 minutes. In both fixtures, there were tactical missteps and puzzling selections that granted Der BVB advantages in certain areas of the pitch.

Luis Enrique got it wrong.

PSG were unfortunate across two legs against Borussia Dortmund, hitting the woodwork six times. They attempted 30 shots on Tuesday alone, the most a knockout team has racked up without scoring since Opta started collecting data from the 2003-04 season. Milan Skriniar was an unused substitute for both legs – he’s trying to regain fitness after a troublesome ankle issue – so Lucas Hernandez suffering a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in the opening fixture was a huge loss. The next in line to replace Hernandez is 20-year-old Lucas Beraldo, who is prey to experienced Champions League campaigners.

But Luis Enrique mishandled plenty of elements within his control.

Kylian Mbappe was deployed centrally in Dortmund rather than in his best position on the left wing, and he struggled to influence the game in a crowded area of the pitch. Not a great deal could be done about the brilliance of Jadon Sancho and Karim Adeyemi in the same meeting, but Luis Enrique’s midfield trio lacked the physicality to adequately compete in the middle and offered nothing to protect full-backs Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes from Dortmund’s vibrant wingers.

And then PSG started the second leg like that.

Luis Enrique’s stock was climbing once more after underwhelming and fractious spells in charge of Spain. Now, his reputation will be much harder to repair. PSG were limping out of the quarterfinals before Barcelona’s Ronald Araujo’s red card kindly ushered them through, and now they’ve slumped in the semifinals after an avoidable elimination to the fifth-best team in Germany.

Winner: Mats Hummels

Many thought Mats Hummels was past his prime when Bayern Munich decided to offload him after a patchy campaign, dubbing the World Cup winner surplus to requirements and shipping him back to Borussia Dortmund.

That was five years ago.

Instead of wilting away, the 35-year-old is enjoying a remarkable renaissance this season, anchoring the Dortmund defense as the club unexpectedly finds itself in the final. He was brilliant against PSG. Sure, there was luck involved – PSG’s profligacy, outlined above, was unusual – and Hummels was millimetres away from conceding a penalty for a foul on Ousmane Dembele in the second half on Tuesday. But his luck, and that of his team, felt earned.

Whenever PSG looked menacing, Hummels popped up on the scene. A last-ditch intervention on Mbappe almost certainly saved a goal. That’s just what he’s been doing all tournament long. The suave center-back leads all players in a collection of key defensive metrics in this season’s Champions League, including tackles, interceptions, clearances, and duels won. That he scored Dortmund’s goal in Paris was icing on the cake.

He’s both a calming presence and inspirational leader, and his play is emboldening his teammates, inspiring them to dig in with him for the battle; Nico Schlotterbeck, in particular, rose to the occasion alongside Hummels to send PSG and their enviable array of attacking stars packing. Hummels’ success is also a victory for narratives. He and fellow BVB icon Marco Reus are the only Dortmund players who were part of the side that lost the 2013 Champions League final to rivals Bayern Munich. That match, like next month’s final, was held at Wembley. His journey now comes full circle.

Losers: Manchester United and Chelsea

Sancho was banned from Manchester United’s training sessions in September after claiming Erik ten Hag made him a “scapegoat” at the underachieving club. Once considered one of the brightest young talents in European football, the Englishman hadn’t made a United appearance since May 2023 and hadn’t played for his country since a routine win over Andorra in October 2021 before returning to Dortmund on loan in January.

How quickly things can change.

In the Champions League semifinals – and either side of Manchester United’s 4-0 defeat to Crystal Palace – Sancho torched Nuno Mendes. Few will begrudge the winger relishing his appearance at the tournament’s showpiece at Wembley Stadium, around 14 miles from his old backyard in south London, while Ten Hag’s United plumb new depths in eighth place in the Premier League table.

Chelsea fans must also look upon this Dortmund team – and the left side of its defense in particular – with some envy.

There’s optimism that a new inverted role will revive Marc Cucurella’s career at Chelsea, but he’s struggled with heightened expectations since his 2022 move from Brighton & Hove Albion and is a regular source of frustration for Blues fans. Fellow left-back Ian Maatsen, meanwhile, has displayed maturity beyond his 22 years during Dortmund’s Champions League knockout matches following his loan move in January. He now has the chance to add another medal to his collection after romping to the Championship title with Burnley last season.

Chelsea co-owner and chairman Todd Boehly was determined to splash the cash. Manchester United went through a phase of predominantly signing players from Ten Hag’s address book. While they’ve been distracted by their own foolish frivolity, they’ve unwittingly strengthened a team for a run to the Champions League final.

Winner: Narratives

The second the semifinal bracket for the tournament was revealed, all eyes were on the potential for Mbappe to meet – and possibly beat – Real Madrid in the Champions League final before joining them in the summer. It was as tantalizing a narrative as they come.

Obviously, it won’t come to fruition. What we are getting, though, could be even better.

The connective tissues linking Bellingham, Borussia Dortmund, and Bayern Munich together are deep. The Englishman could only watch in horror last season as Dortmund threw the Bundesliga title away on the final day of the season, gifting it to Bayern. Wednesday’s comeback against Bayern was surely a little bit sweeter for the midfielder after that heartache.

His reward? A meeting with the club he left and former teammates he forged strong bonds with during his three-year spell in western Germany. After the spectacular debut season he’s enjoyed in Madrid, he could cap it by beating the team he just left, in his home country, no less.

The script has been written.

“At Wembley against Dortmund, it’s a weird one and I can’t believe it, but I’m so looking forward to it. When I was seven years old in Birmingham, I was dreaming of nights like this,” Bellingham said of the impending encounter.

Eat your heart out, Hollywood.

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Kylian Mbappe confirmed the worst-kept secret in football Friday, announcing he’s leaving Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the season.

Mbappe’s contract with PSG officially expires June 30.

“I will not extend and the adventure will come to an end in a few weeks,” Mbappe said in a video posted on X. “I will play my last game at the Parc des Princes on Sunday (against Toulouse).”

Real Madrid are now set to land the World Cup winner on a free transfer this summer. Mbappe reportedly agreed to personal terms with Los Blancos in February.

Mbappe has spent his entire career in Ligue 1, making his senior debut with AS Monaco in 2015 and winning the league with the principality side in 2017 before collecting 14 more domestic titles over seven seasons with PSG.

He’ll add one more to his trophy haul if PSG beat Lyon in the French Cup final on May 25, his final appearance for the club.

Mbappe didn’t mention Madrid in his farewell post but indicated he would play outside France next season.

“It’s hard, and I never thought it would be this difficult to announce that, to leave my country, France, Ligue 1, a championship I’ve always known, but I think I needed this, after seven years, a new challenge,” he added.

His announcement is something of a formality. Mbappe initially signaled his intention to leave last summer when he declined an option in his contract to extend his time at the club until June 2025. PSG subsequently dropped the 25-year-old from its preseason tour of Asia and forced him to train with the reserve team before reinstating him to the senior squad.

At that time, PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi said it was “impossible” to allow Mbappe to leave the club on a free transfer. Despite holding “positive” talks with the player – reportedly offering him a raise on top of his already-gargantuan €72-million gross salary – the side couldn’t persuade him to extend.

PSG signed Mbappe from Monaco in 2017 for €180 million and, while he’s scored a club-record 255 goals in 306 appearances for the Ligue 1 giants, he couldn’t help them win the one competition that’s eluded them: the Champions League. Mbappe was held scoreless as Borussia Dortmund eliminated Les Parisiens in the semifinals on Tuesday. Mbappe and Co. also fell short in the 2020 final against Bayern Munich.

“It’s a lot of emotions,” the French star continued, “many years where I had the chance and the great honor to be a member of the biggest French club, one of the best in the world, which allowed me to arrive here, to have my first experience in a club with a lot of pressure, to grow as a player, of course, by being alongside some of the best in history, some of the greatest champions, to meet a lot of people, to grow as a man as well, with all the glory and mistakes I’ve made.”

Madrid have been chasing Mbappe’s signature for the past years. He appeared set to join the Spanish outfit in 2022 but instead signed an extension with PSG. That deal included a €150-million signing bonus and required the persuasive powers of French President Emmanuel Macron.

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GENEVA (AP) — FIFA offered peace talks to the global networks of player unions and domestic leagues on Friday after they threatened legal action about soccer’s congested international calendar.

FIFPRO and the World Leagues Association aired long-held frustrations at FIFA adding new and bigger events — including a revamped 32-team Club World Cup next year and a 48-team men’s World Cup in 2026 — without fully consulting their members, they claimed.

The 2024-25 schedule in European soccer also will be squeezed by UEFA expanding its three main club competitions, including a Champions League format with 36 teams. UEFA club events will occupy 10 midweeks of fixtures dates, including two new ones in January, instead of the current six.

FIFA defended its role in managing the international calendar in writing to both soccer organizations, offering to “identify suitable dates and locations” for a meeting, in a letter seen by The Associated Press.

All parties should meet in London on the sidelines of the Champions League final on June 1 at Wembley Stadium. Real Madrid plays Borussia Dortmund in a marquee game typically attended by FIFA president Gianni Infantino.

A meeting is possible in the pause between club seasons, later in June into mid-July, FIFA interim secretary general Mattias Grafstrom wrote in the letter.

Grafstrom pushed back on claims FIFA prioritized its business interests over the well-being of players and domestic leagues, and questioned if FIFPRO and World Leagues had threatened legal action against other competition organizers.

FIFA was responsible, Grafstrom wrote, for “a fractional amount of the total elite club games around the world,” and had a duty to reinvest its billions of dollars of revenue in developing the game in 211 member federations.

He added, “While we disagree with the tenor and content of your letter, we have nonetheless taken note of your concerns and are more than happy to continue our ongoing dialogue on this important topic.”

Key FIFA decisions and projects in recent years have emerged since May 2021 when it shut down the Football Stakeholders Committee that included union and league officials, plus representative of clubs and national federations.

That panel was created four years earlier to debate and prepare changes to soccer regulations and competitions.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer