Why Paris Saint-Germain's Adrien Rabiot Is Putting His Own Future at Risk

Back in 2012, Adrien Rabiot’s move from Paris Saint-Germain's youth club to the first team went through with less than a murmur. Now, two years later, his next move is making the headlines for all the wrong reasons, and it is threatening to ruin what was once a very exciting prospect.

Rabiot’s position at PSG was played out for all to see during the summer. After his successful loan spell with Ligue 1 side Toulouse FC at the end of the 2012/13 season, Rabiot returned to Paris and made 25 appearances last season, 12 of them starting.

You would think this would have been excellent progress from an 18-year-old midfielder, especially with the likes of Blaise Matuidi, Marco Verratti and Thiago Motta ahead of him (not to mention January signing Yohan Cabaye unable to force his way into the starting lineup).

Apparently, this was not good enough for Rabiot. He rejected a new deal at the Parisian club, per Jonathan Johnson on ESPN FC, a six-fold wage increase that was deemed unsatisfactory because it was less than French international Lucas Digne was earning.

Left-back Digne joined PSG from Lille for €15 million, is two years Rabiot’s senior and had broken into the full French national team. It is quite easy to understand why Digne was a higher earner than Rabiot.

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While Digne was in Brazil as part of France’s World Cup squad, Rabiot was playing for his country at the under-20 football festival in Toulon.

With news of Rabiot’s unrest, many clubs were alerted to his availability, including AS Roma, Inter Milan and Juventus, per Sky Sports, with talks of either a money move in the summer or a free transfer when his contract expires in 2015.

Rabiot's mother Veronique acts as the player’s agent, and a lot of the blame regarding the situation the player currently finds himself in falls at her door. It’s obvious she wants the best for her son, but it is clear she doesn’t quite grasp what that is.

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Rabiot: "I know what my mother (Veronique) does for me as my agent & that is the most important thing."

— Jonathan Johnson (@Jon_LeGossip) October 12, 2014"

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Rabiot's staunch defence of his mother (Veronique) also suggests that any recent talk of a contract renewal with PSG is wide of the mark.

— Jonathan Johnson (@Jon_LeGossip) October 12, 2014"

At 19 years old, the one thing that Rabiot should be doing is playing football, and through all the contract negotiations and rumours of a move, this is the one thing he is not doing. It could harm his long-term development.

On Sunday night, Rabiot featured on Canal Football Club, one of the biggest television shows in France (via Goal.com), and the midfielder revealed that he was very close to completing a move to Roma in the summer, but it fell through at the last moment.

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I don't know if I will play again for PSG. It was not my choice to play for the reserve team but it's a pleasure to play football, even training and playing in the fourth tier.

I'm available to the coach [Laurent Blanc] and he'll decide. We speak very often and he told me that he would love this situation to be resolved.

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Something that is very interesting from Rabiot’s quotes was his admittance that his want to move to Roma was not because of the competition at PSG. If he doesn’t want to move because he can’t get a regular game, that suggests that one of the reasons behind the move is purely financial, and that is a worry for his future.

Rabiot himself admitted that Roma has as much midfield competition as at PSG, and he would have to challenge players such as Kevin Strootman, Daniele De Rossi, Radja Nainggolan and Miralem Pjanic for playing time.

At just 19 years old, the Frenchman would struggle to break into this current Roma side, so he would spend at least another two years on the bench. By the age of 21, he would still not be a first-team player. This is when young players need someone with an understanding of the game to properly advise them of how best to develop their own career.

According to Gianluca Di Marzio, there had been talks before his appearance on Canal+ suggesting that the player and his mother were mulling over a new contract offer from PSG. The deal was to include a loan move to a European club and a future at the French champions.

If Rabiot and his mother were wise, they would accept this deal. When you look at the PSG midfield, there are currently four players ahead of Rabiot. Thiago Motta is 32 years old and will not last forever, and you also have Yohan Cabaye struggling to win a place in the side. That could see Rabiot become a first-team regular in two years.

Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

It could also see his minutes and starts increase as his confidence grows and Blanc’s trust in the player returns.

Moving to Serie A would follow a pattern of running away when things get tough. He may have only been 16 when it happened in Manchester City’s academy, but it is starting to become a habit.

If Adrien Rabiot wants to become a top midfielder and a French international, he needs to be playing games as often as possible at a club where he has the chance to progress. PSG represent everything the player wants and needs. The quicker Rabiot and his mother realise this, the quicker everyone can benefit from the obvious gift he has.

Spending a few more years down the pecking order will likely end his chances of becoming the player everyone predicted he would be.