Before England’s World Cup quarterfinal match against France, information about Kylian Mbappe’s four-day trial at Chelsea when he was only 12 years old has come to light.
When Kylian Mbappe was barely 12 years old, he nearly signed with Chelsea.
After Kylian Mbappe’s 12-year-old tryout with the west London club, Chelsea declined the chance to sign him, according to The Athletic.
Daniel Boga, a former scout for the team and the brother of former Chelsea player Jeremie, described a chat he had with Mbappe’s mother, Fayza, who said the club would regret not taking a chance on her son. Even if hindsight is lovely, it is safe to say that she was correct.
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Former club scout Boga received a tip on Mbappe from a person he knew at Nike. Booga stated: “Daniel, I believe you should visit Paris. There’s a young man named Kylian Mbappe who has already signed a contract with me, he said. You ought to visit him.”
Mbappe was therefore given his Chelsea tryout. It was planned for the 2010–2011 season’s conclusion. In order to be close to the club’s practice facility, Mbappe’s mother, father (Wilfried), and older brother Jires Kembo Ekoko were all traveling with him. They were all staying at a hotel in Cobham. For four days, Boga said, “I went there every day and spoke with them to find out how they felt about the ambiance [at the club].”
Mbappe only appeared in one game for Chelsea during his trial. He failed to score in the game, but he described to FourFourTwo a few years back how it was a terrific experience for him.
Mbappe claimed, “I played up front, but I don’t think I scored. It was wonderful because it was my first time traveling outside of the country and I got to watch how the game is played in England.
Booga stated: “Amazing when he has the ball. He pushes the ball, and you can no longer see him. You could tell he had a unique quality.
Mbappe obviously never did sign with Chelsea. Before AS Monaco decided to take a chance on him, the France international played his entire career with AS Bondy. They claim that the rest is history.
To be honest, the youngster seemed to know exactly what he wanted to do when you spoke with him, Boga said. “He aspired to excellence.
“And from then, the father is always right behind him, reminding him what he needs to do, what to avoid doing, and strategically demonstrating things so that they are ready. The mother played handball professionally, and the father coached. Everything was thus present.