January 8 – In what could be a decisive twist in the Kylian Mbappe transfer saga, French reports suggest the coveted striker has after all agreed to join Real Madrid when his Paris Saint-Germain contract expires this summer.
Mbappe extended his deal with Qatari-backed PSG in 2022 when famously turning his back on Real.
But after officially entering the last six months of his PSG contract, he has been free to negotiate with potential suitors since January 1.
Three days later he said he still hadn’t made up his mind about his future and was “very, very motivated for this year”.
Unconfirmed reports subsequently said he was open to offers since he wasn’t going to Real but now it appears he will become a Madrid player in July after reaching an agreement “a few days ago”.
If the latest report is true, it will be a case of third time lucky for Madrid president Florentino Perez.
In 2017, Perez tried to prevent Mbappe from joining PSG only to miss out. Five years later the mercurial forward accepted an astronomical offer to stay in Paris.
Mbappe can expect to earn far less at Madrid than his reported $110 million salary but perhaps has a much better chance of finally lifting the Champions League.
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