International soccer superstar Kylian Mbappé is expected to join Real Madrid in the summer after his contract with Paris Saint-Germain expires. While the French footballer hasn’t officially left Paris Saint-Germain, the deal will pay him 15 million euros annually for the next five years with a signing bonus of 150 million euros.
Madrid attempted to sign him in the Summer of 2022, but he decided to renew his deal with PSG instead. Liverpool and Arsenal in the Barclays Premier League were also in the mix for Mbappé.
Player Background
Mbappé, 25, has established himself as one of the most prolific soccer players of our generation. He’s the all-time leading scorer for PSG with 244 goals, 93 assists in 291 appearances and a World Cup win in 2018. He broke the individual club record in goals over PSG legends Zlatan Ibrahimović, Edinson Cavani and Pedro Miguel Pauleta. In 2022, France finished runner-up to Argentina, but Mbappé took home the Golden Boot and Silver Ball Award.
He spent seven seasons at PSG, which brought them to the 2020 Champions League Final against Bayern Munich. However, despite his relationship with the team, Mbappé met with PSG club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi to inform him that he wants to leave PSG.
Conflicts with PSG
PSG attempted to keep Mbappé by offering him a raise atop his 72-million-euro salary. On Saturday, he was left out of the starting lineup in a match against Nantes in the Champions League tournament. He came off the bench later in the game and scored in a 2-0 win over Nantes.
This wasn’t the only team to make an offer. Last year, the Saudi Pro League made him an offer of 259 million euros, which at the time was a world record offer. He refused to meet with representatives from team Al Hilal. His move to Real Madrid is considered a “free transfer,” which is when “players are free to negotiate with other clubs without their old club receiving a transfer fee when there are six months left on their contract.” Mbappé is the highest-paid player in the history of European soccer.
Since the preseason tour, it has been a rocky ride for PSG and Mbappé. He was left out of the preseason tour in Japan due to talks with the club on why he would not extend his contract.
Ownership Perspective
Former PSG sporting director Leonardo said in a 2023 interview that, “it’s entirely possible to win [the Champions League] without him.”
Al-Khelaifi added to the discussion about Mbappé, “I don’t want to repeat it every time: if Kylian wants to stay, we want him to stay. But he needs to sign a new contract … We don’t want to lose the best player in the world for free — we can’t do that. This is a French club.”
Real Madrid’s Potential Plans
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti must decide where to place Mbappé, either in the center or left side of the attack. PSG used Mbappé on the left wing and centre-forward this season. He could play up front alongside Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo. In the last decade, Madrid had to replace Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema, Raphaël Varane and Casemiro.
It will be a tough loss for Madrid with Toni Kroos and Luka Modrić set to become free agents this summer. Madrid’s starting lineup could be: Júnior, Mbappé, Rodrygo, Eduardo Camavinga, Jude Bellingham, Federico Valverde, Alphonso Davies (from Bayern Munich, should they sign him), David Alaba, Éder Militão, Dani Carvajal and Thibaut Courtois.
Post-Mbappé era
Mbappé came close to winning the Balloon d’Or in 2023, finishing third behind Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland. Replacing Mbappé will be a struggle for PSG. With looming decisions to make in the summer when the transfer market window opens, it should be interesting to see how things shake up for PSG. From July to Sept. 1, PSG should consider signing Napoli’s Victor Osimhen, Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva and Newcastle United’s Bruno Guimarães. The franchise’s budget could be as high as 300 million euros following Mbappé’s exit. It will be a tough pill to swallow for PSG fans to see him move on, but there are things to be excited about with young rising talent.
AC Milan forward Rafael Leão could make a move to PSG. The French club had interest in Leão last season following the departures of Lionel Messi and Neymar from the team. 24-year-old Leão only scored three goals in Serie A, but last year he scored 16 goals and 15 assists.
Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford could be Mbappé’s potential replacement. Rashford offers similar versatility to Mbappé, but he’s only scored five goals this season for Manchester United.