Kylian Mbappe Subject of Trending Petition to Remove Star From Real Madrid Amid Club's Struggles

A growing contingent of Real Madrid supporters have apparently had it with star forward Kylian Mbappé.

A petition simply titled "Mbappé Out" has received more than 30 million online signatures.

Madrid is a distant second to rival Barcelona in La Liga, and it got knocked out by Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

Mbappé in particular has become a lightning rod after The Athletic's Guillermo Rai and Mario Cortegana reported Tuesday the Frenchman "was involved in a flare-up with a coach during a training exercise."

"Sources said the Frenchman spoke angrily and in insulting terms towards the member of staff, who was acting as an assistant referee on the sidelines of the match and had called him offside," the report said.

Rai and Cortegana added that "Mbappé's conduct did not go down well with many around Madrid." Supporters also took exception to the fact he recently traveled to Italy away from the team while recovering from a hamstring injury.

Life as a marquee player at Real Madrid can often veer from one extreme to the other.

In the best of times, there's almost nothing else like it. There's a reason the club remains a magnet for stars. But it only takes a few bad results or performances for things to quickly sour.

In the space of a year, Vinícius Júnior went from being a Ballon d'Or runner-up to getting jeered by his own supporters.

Mbappé is to some degree a victim of the sky-high expectations that were laid out when he signed with Madrid in 2024. Whether it's fair or not, zero La Liga titles, Champions League medals or Ballons d'Or is deemed by many to be a failure so far.

It doesn't help that Paris Saint-Germain actually looks better after he left. Fans in the Spanish capital will naturally question whether Madrid would benefit from the same thing.

The obvious problem is that there isn't a natural landing spot for a world-class player in his prime if things don't work out at Real Madrid. Gareth Bale lasted eight seasons at the Bernabéu largely for that fact.

A summer break and a new permanent manager may provide the reset Mbappé needs. Let's just see who the favorite to succeed Alvaro Arbeloa is.

Oh no.