Kylian Mbappe’s amusing St James’ Park request ahead of Newcastle United Champions League clash

Kylian Mbappe once joked it’s “not very warm in Newcastle” so the French superstar requesting a pair of gloves five minutes into a Paris Saint-Germain training session at St James’ Park shouldn’t come as any surprise.

While PSG boast a number of top-class players in their ranks, all eyes were on Mbappe as he graced the St James’ turf for the first time last night. There was no hiding from the TV cameras, and Mbappe’s signal for some gloves in the 13C temperature was an amusing moment. If you think that’s cold Kylian, try coming back in a month’s time!

The 24-year-old did arrive on Tyneside with the preconception that the North East of England is cold. Indeed, when his French teammate Antoine Griezmann told him he’d signed him for United on Football Manager, Mbappe replied: “Newcastle? It’s not very warm there, eh?”

Perhaps Mbappe won’t feel the cold when he and his teammates take on the Magpies this evening (kick-off 8pm). St James’ Park is set to stage a red-hot atmosphere with generations of supporters about to witness their first-ever Champions League match in the flesh.

But that’s nothing Mbappe won’t be aware of if his head coach Luis Enrique has anything to do about.

“They [Newcastle] are the team in the fourth pot that no one wanted,” Enrique said. “We know they play at a high level. They are a complete football team and they will be playing in front of extremely passionate supporters as well.”

“I don’t think the Champions League is about consistency. You may need to that to get out of the group but once you get to the knockout stage, anything can happen. All teams can go far in the Champions League, there is no reason why Newcastle can’t either.

“No one wanted to play them because we saw how good they were last season and how they played last year. We’re coming to St James’ Park, it’s a hostile atmosphere but it’s also a spectacular place to come and play.

“It’ll be good to see what our team is made of by playing at St James’ Park. I’m envious of my players that they’re going to get to experience that first-hand now. It’s going to be a great game.”