Manchester United scouted Mbappe but didn’t sign him, says Ryan Giggs

One of the world’s most prolific goal scorers, Kylian Mbappe, could have signed a contract with Manchester United when he was a little-known teenager in the French league, but the English Premier League club’s scouts decided against approaching his then-club, Monaco, former United player and coach Ryan Giggs has revealed.

Giggs, who was United’s interim and assistant coach between 2014 and 2016, made the revelation on a podcast with his former United teammate Rio Ferdinand on Wednesday.

Mbappe has several club and international goal-scoring records to his name and now plays for European football giants Real Madrid in Spain.

The 27-year-old signed for the La Liga team in 2024 from French league champions Paris Saint-Germain, who scooped him up from Monaco in 2018 after Mbappe lit up Ligue 1 with his speed and goal-scoring accuracy.

But according to Giggs, Mbappe could have been a Red Devil had the club’s scouts pursued him after watching him play in 2015.

The United legend said he was in southern France in 2015 when he was approached by a local football scout and tipped off about a rising star.

“I was walking along the beach back to the hotel and all of a sudden I can feel someone coming up to me,” Giggs said while narrating his meeting with the scout.

“He comes up to me and says, ‘I just wanted to just say hello. I’m a big United fan and big fan of yours. I watch a lot of youth football in France and you have to look at this player. He’s called Kylian Mbappe. He’s at Monaco and I think he’s a player for Man United.'”