everything Voices very simple.
Kylian Mbappe said he wants to leave Paris Saint-Germain.
Real Madrid want to sign him, and they made an offer in early January. This summer, Mbappe's contract will expire, and he will be free to join the club of his choice.
He is now free to discuss terms with whomever he wants, and he rejected the option of remaining in France.
But there are still many unresolved questions. Including large ones.
The transfer saga between Mbappe and Madrid has seen more twists and turns than many remember. Even now – at a very advanced stage of the final negotiations – it is not certain where he will play next season.
Mbappe has scored 243 goals since signing for Paris Saint-Germain in 2017 (David Ramos/Getty Images)
On Friday, Mbappé told his Paris Saint-Germain teammates of his decision to leave in a speech in the dressing room.
But club sources – who, like all those cited here, preferred to speak anonymously to protect relationships – said there had been no mention of who would join, even if Mbappé had previously told teammates he would like to be Madrid.
Mbappé has known the terms that Real Madrid wants to offer him since early January, an offer that left some influential members of his camp unconvinced, which led to a delay in Real Madrid’s attempts to sign him. They also did not like Madrid's request to inform them of the decision by mid-January.
Mbappe's speech to his fellow players at Paris Saint-Germain's training ground on Friday came one day after news emerged of his decision to leave at the end of the season.
The circumstances of his departure are still to be arranged, and PSG and the player are expected to make an official announcement on the matter in the next few months.
Let's take a look at the issues at hand, starting by delving a little deeper into what PSG and Mbappe still have to discuss.
When is a free transfer not a free transfer?
In August, Paris Saint-Germain and Mbappe were going through a moment of extreme tension. Mbappe was excluded from first-team training and did not travel on the club's pre-season tour after indicating he would not accept the option of extending his contract for an additional year.
At Mbappe's request, a meeting was held between him and club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi immediately before the start of the season, and it was agreed to return him to his position. The first match of the new season was played and then another meeting was held after the match in the presence of sporting director Luis Campos and technical director Luis Enrique.
The French club has always sought to stress that any possible departure of Mbappe at the end of the 2023-2024 season will not be a “free transfer”, although he will leave when his contract expires. The agreement reached at these two meetings explains why.
It's a complex arrangement that covers several scenarios, but each one, according to sources familiar with its terms, would see Mbappé compensate the club financially if he leaves when his contract expires after June 30.
Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Mbappe in 2022 (Frank Fife/AFP via Getty Images)
How this ends will be further shaped by talks between the player and the club over the next few months, but sources at PSG describe this as a legally binding written agreement.
Mbappe and Al-Khelaifi discussed this issue on Tuesday when the player said he intended to leave this summer. Al-Khelaifi confirmed the club’s position on Mbappe: They believe that he must make financial sacrifices related to his earnings at Paris Saint-Germain, or pay them a portion of any registration bonus he receives from Madrid.
This issue is still under discussion.
When Real Madrid tried to sign Mbappe in 2022, they offered a signing bonus of €130m (£111m; $140m at current rates) and a salary of €26m per year.
Real Madrid's latest offer for Mbappe was lower than that, although it is still significant enough to make him the highest-paid player in the Madrid squad. Mbappe's annual salary at Paris Saint-Germain is about 75 million euros after taxes and before any bonuses.
Speaking on Friday, a PSG source indicated that whatever Mbappe agrees to “with Madrid” will determine what comes next in the matter.
Does Mbappé have any other offers from elsewhere?
Paris Saint-Germain sources have said in recent weeks that they have heard that Mbappe has strong interest from a “third club”. These same sources claimed that they do not fully trust this information, and that they believe it may be part of a negotiating tactic. Regarding previous offers, in July 2023, Paris Saint-Germain received and accepted a €300 million offer from Saudi club Al Hilal for the player.
Mbappe's camp refused to comment on the issue of whether there are other offers this time.
All the information The athlete Reports indicate that Mbappe only has one offer from outside Paris Saint-Germain, which is Real Madrid. Any club in the world would love to include the striker in their team, but the Frenchman appears to have that offer on the table.
Mbappe, pictured in September, told teammates on Friday that he was leaving (Aurélien Meunier – Paris Saint-Germain via Getty Images)
What's new from Madrid?
For weeks, sources in Real Madrid's coaching staff have reflected confidence in the idea of Mbappe being part of their team next season, and that confidence has only increased this week, even before news of the player's decision to leave Paris Saint-Germain emerged.
That was the message the board conveyed to Valdebebas's senior figures during this week's trip to Germany, where the team played the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie against RB Leipzig on Tuesday evening.
However, since Thursday, sources in Madrid have preferred to downplay the significance of the reference to reaching an agreement with Mbappe.
Nothing fundamental has changed from Madrid's point of view. They still want to sign Mbappé, a player they have followed for years – and the ultimate sign of their determination to do so is the leading role played by Florentino Pérez in the negotiations.
So, what can we expect next? It is certain that Mbappe will not stay in the end…
In any story involving Real Madrid and Kylian Mbappe, it is dangerous to speculate.
But we know that it has not been confirmed whether Mbappe and Real Madrid have reached an agreement, and it appears that no other club has made an offer for him yet.
We also know that despite the saga, PSG are determined to hold on to Mbappe's 17-year-old brother Ethan, who the club has been… Do We expect to sign a new deal.
There's another detail that's also important. Real Madrid knew that Mbappe would inform Paris Saint-Germain of his decision this week. This tells you that they are still in very close contact.
(Top image: Aurelien Meunier/Getty Images)
