August 25, (THEWILL) – The ongoing transfer tussle over Kylian Mbappe between La Liga’s Real Madrid and Ligue 1’s Paris Saint-Germain continued on Wednesday with the report that the French side had rejected Real’s initial massive €160 million bid, about $188 million, for the superstar French forward.
Les Parisiens however left a window of possibility open with the intention to consider entering negotiations with the Spanish side if Real would also consider upping their offer by proposing a €200 million ($235 million) bid for Mbappe.
This comes from reluctance on the part of PSG to allow Mbappe to leave in the hope that they can secure him for the long-term. Yet, they allow the chance of a massive payday should Real be as interested in getting their star striker as to part with a hefty sum to get him.
However, as dicey a game as the former Ligue 1 champions are playing, they are confident of not losing their striker. The debate so far has been that PSG could end up rejecting Real and fail in convincing the 22-year-old to stay, so that they end up the way Barcelona did, in a situation where their star player, whose contract ends after the 2021/2022 season, will leave for free.
Nevertheless, the club has argued against that with the sentiment that Mbappe has given them assurances that he will not leave for free. Their confidence remains that if Real do not meet their valuations for the player, which is calculated with the amount still owed Monaco in the move that brought Mbappe to Paris, then Mbappe remains a PSG player and will accept new terms.
As confident as this seems, THEWILL reported that Mbappe had already rejected two offers for the extension of his contract and has not hidden his desire to leave from the hierarchy at the club. Yet, the club has a plan for the new season and Mbappe features prominently in that plan.
PSG intends to make Mbappe feature in the attacking trio they have built over the summer by bringing in Barcelona’s Lionel Messi to present a front three of Neymar, Mbappe and Messi in what could be the world’s most high-profile attacking trio currently in action. Mbappe’s exit will disrupt their plans and they do not want that.
However, it should ring at the back of their minds how they came to get Messi to their side in the first place and the lessons that are inherent in trying to keep a player until their contract expires. It all comes down to Mbappe accepting a new deal, which PSG is confident will happen although the Frenchman has shown no willingness to do so for now.
It remains to be seen which way things will turn as the possibility remains for Real to provide the asking price due to some tight financial decisions made at the Santiago Bernabeu that has seen the club remain buoyant in the midst of the COVID-19 disruptions.
Otherwise, Los Blancos could concede that the demands of PSG are not worth their money, in much the same way as Manchester City, the English champions, did over the high asking price of Tottenham Hotspur for Harry Kane. If that happens, PSG will be hoping Mbappe reverses course in much the same way as Kane did and re-commit to Les Parisiens.
Mbappe has scored 133 goals in 174 appearances across all competitions for PSG so far. His departure would be a major loss if Real succeed, although the arrival of Messi would help soften the blow in the short term for the French side.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
