Is Kylian Mbappe joining Real Madrid?
By Euan Burns
It has seemed for an incredibly long amount of time that Kylian Mbappe would eventually end up playing for Real Madrid.
It seems like a marriage made in heaven, right? A guy who has been destined for greatness since he was a teenager, and the team historically associated most with the most high-profile and talented players in the game.
It very nearly happened in the summer of 2022, but the Frenchman had a change of heart.
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A bumper new PSG contract
When it seemed that Mbappe would be choosing a move to Real Madrid, a well-documented childhood dream of his, he signed a new deal with PSG in late May 2022.
It is a contract unlike any that football has seen before. Various reports claimed that the three-year deal featured a €100m signing bonus and an eye-watering €50m salary.
Mbappe was even encouraged by French president Emmanuel Macron to sign the deal and remain the centrepiece of both Ligue 1 and French football as a whole.
Not only does the contract both continue and enhance his incredible accumulation of wealth, but it also supposedly gives him serious power over the general running of the club.
Luis Campos replaced Leonardo as sporting director (who departed before the new deal was signed) and he is a close friend of Mbappe's from their shared time at Monaco.
It was even reported by L'Equipe at the time that Mbappe had agreed with the club to sell Neymar in the same summer.
A swift breakdown in relations in Paris
The football world moves fast. That harmonious-looking contract extension seems a very long time ago.
It was recently reported by the likes of MARCA and RMC that Mbappe wants to leave PSG in January and the relationship between club and player has completely broken down.
He feels promises around signings and departures in the summer were not kept and that is why he wants out, just six months into his new deal.
Could Kylian Mbappe join Real Madrid?
It is fair to immediately assume that Real Madrid must be Mbappe's destination, but the situation is far from simple.
Mbappe seriously upset both Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and the entire fan base when he chose to stay at PSG in the summer after seemingly stringing Los Blancos along.
There is also the fact that Real Madrid will have to buy him rather than get him out of contract, and relations between the two clubs could not be worse.
The summer transfer saga saw them warring with each other, and they have also been at loggerheads over the proposed Super League plans which won't go away.
The only other team that have been regularly linked in a credible manner with a move for Mbappe is Liverpool. That then raises the question of wage structure.
Mohamed Salah would need to be sold but his annual salary is reportedly £18,200,000. It doesn't need a conversion to see that Mbappe's €50m is much higher.
There is no clear way out for Mbappe in January and if he is to achieve his dream of playing for Real Madrid, especially as soon as January, he's going to need a lot of moving parts to fall into place.