"It's a joke" - Ex-Real Madrid president reacts to claims that PSG superstar Kylian Mbappe could cost €1 billion

Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon has reacted to claims that Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) superstar Kylian Mbappe could cost as much as €1 billion.

Multiple reports in Italy have suggested that Real Madrid could make a sensational move to sign the PSG attacker for the aforementioned price.

Kylian Mbappe signed a new deal with PSG in the summer rejecting the option to join Los Blancos. Despite being tied down at the Parc des Princes until the summer of 2025, he continues to be linked with an exit.

It has been suggested that a financial package worth a total of €1 billion would be needed to lure the Frenchman away from PSG. Ramon Calderon has laughed off claims that Real Madrid could spend such a massive amount for the Frenchman. He told talkSPORT:

“I think it’s a joke! Many newspapers here said in the summer that Kylian Mbappe was coming to Real Madrid, they even said when – the day, the time, the place, the people who will be with him – so you know what happens sometimes with newspapers, they have to cover a lot of pages and a lot of rumours to keep the attention of the readers."

“But I think it’s a joke to say that a club could pay €1bn for one player. Mainly because the player still belongs to a club and he said in the summer that he didn’t want to leave. So if you ask me about this rumour, I can’t believe it, really. Could a football club ever pay €1bn for a player? You know football, never say never… but nowadays I think that would be impossible."

Calderon has, however, claimed that he would love to see Mbappe join La Casa Blanca and compared him to Ronaldo Nazario. He added:

“We saw PSG paying €222m for Neymar which appeared to be an incredible amount of money, and yet they did it. We’ve seen many times amounts being paid that we couldn’t believe before. I find that very difficult, I don’t see anyone paying that amount of money nowadays. You still have financial fair play, I don’t see anyone able to pay that according to their own numbers.”

“I would like to see Mbappe at Real Madrid. Nobody would say no to a player like him, how he played in Qatar, how he is able to score goals from any position. He reminds me a lot of Ronaldo Nazario, the Brazilian – the same strength, the same way of running, the same ability to score goals. It seems difficult, but I wish it will happen.”

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Real Madrid identify Serie A midfielder as Plan C if they fail to sign Jude Bellingham and Enzo Fernandez

Real Madrid have reportedly identified Juventus midfielder Manuel Locatelli as an alternative if they fail to sign top midfield targets Jude Bellingham or Enzo Fernandez.

As per Diario AS, Liverpool and Real Madrid are both chasing the signatures of Jude Bellingham and Enzo Fernandez. The report also claims that neither of the two clubs will get both players. Hence, Los Blancos are looking at Juventus star Manuel Locatelli as a plan C if they fail to land both Jude Bellingham and Enzo Fernandez.

The Italy international joined the Bianconeri in 2021 on a two-year loan from Sassuolo with the obligation to buy for €35 million. He has since become a key member of Massimiliano Allegri's midfield, making 17 appearances across competitions.