Kylian Mbappé to Real Madrid has been a case of “when” rather than “if” for some time, but Paris Saint-Germain are adamant that they will still be able to keep hold of their star man despite a deal with Los Merengues seeming inevitable, according to MARCA.
The Parisians are willing to do everything in their power to retain their most important asset – both on and off the pitch – ahead of the 2023/24 campaign and beyond his current contract, which expires in 12 months time.
Mbappé and his representatives still have their hearts set on running down the current deal and joining Los Blancos for free next year, should a deal not be accepted earlier. Real are expected to offer the 24-year-old a five-year contract with a €50m-per-year salary.
The relationship between Mbappé and the PSG hierarchy has been frosty for some time, but it appears that a new meeting between the forward and the Qatari ownership could well take place in the near future.
Nasser Al-Khelaifi is expected to use everything in his arsenal to prevent the Frenchman from leaving for nothing, with a sale a drastically better prospect than letting his contract run down. But keeping Kylian in Paris is still his main objective, providing new manager Luis Enrique with the world-class player he will surely want to build his team around.
Al-Khelaifi believes that there is still time to come to an agreement despite the fact that relations now are not the best.
As things stand, Mbappé is expected back for pre-season training on 17 July and to be on board a flight to Japan on 22 July as PSG go on their pre-season tour.
Anthony Tomas | GSFN
