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French superstar Kylian Mbappé might be scoring goals for fun for Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 this season – he currently has 14 in 17 appearances for the French champions – but that hasn’t stopped rumours of his potential departure from flying around in the usual media outlets. Most recently, Mbappe reportedly clashed with PSG boss Thomas Tuchel following the forward’s substitution during a match against Montpellier, and while the pair have supposedly held a clear-the-air talk since – it definitely feels like the World Cup winner’s time at the Le Parc des Princes could be close to an end.
Here are 4 potential destinations for Kylian Mbappé.
#1 Real Madrid
Unsurprisingly given their reputation for signing the world’s best players – dating back to the 90s and the days of the ‘Galacticos’ like Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo – Real Madrid have long been considered the most likely destination for Mbappé, even before he made the move from Monaco to Paris Saint-Germain.
The signing of Mbappé – a player who feels like the genuine heir to the throne of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as the greatest on the planet by Los Blancos would probably eclipse even that of Paul Pogba, as the midfielder’s form at Manchester United has been spotty at best while his international teammate has been nothing short of fantastic at PSG.
There have already been plenty of news outlets – some admittedly more unreliable than others, suggesting that Mbappé has already agreed personal terms at the Bernabéu, and could leave either during this summer’s transfer window or in that of 2021.
A world-record fee of £ 257m has even been mooted. Regardless, Mbappé would be the ultimate Galactico signing for Real right now, meaning a move to the Spanish capital is always possible.
#2 Barcelona
Real Madrid might be well known for buying the world’s best players, but their bitter rivals Barcelona are equally adept at splashing the cash, famously signing the likes of Ousmane Dembele, Philippe Coutinho, and Antoine Griezmann in recent seasons, with the all three players both costing north of €100m.
That’s why the Nou Camp could well prove to be an attractive destination. The French forward would undoubtedly fetch a monstrous transfer fee from Paris Saint-Germain, but La Blaugrana are definitely the type of club to pay it, particularly if they need to appease their fans this summer should the rumours of Lionel Messi’s departure be true.
Another possibility, of course, is that Barça could use the signing of Mbappé to show Messi that they mean business when it comes to re-establishing themselves as Europe’s most powerful club – ensuring that the Argentine wizard would wish to stay with them for the foreseeable future.
After all, no signing right now could be more of a marquee one than the French World Cup winner.
#3 Manchester City
Reports are already beginning to emerge that Manchester City could be interested in making a move for Mbappé, which is hardly a surprise given that the Abu Dhabi-backed side are amongst the richest in world football. Could City match the supposed £ 200m+ price tag that the French forward would command? Almost certainly.
The bigger question then becomes, do the Cityzens need Mbappé? The answer to that question is almost certainly a yes. City look set to miss out on the Premier League title this season, and unless they were to win the Champions League, Pep Guardiola would undoubtedly view the campaign as a failure.
With German forward Leroy Sane potentially on his way out of the Etihad this summer, a potential move for Mbappé – to either replace him, or even the ageing Sergio Agüero – would certainly make sense, and would provide City with arguably the most dangerous attacker on the planet.
Current reports also suggest City could be looking at Tottenham’s Harry Kane – but the England captain is under a long contract at Spurs and the likelihood is that they would never sell him to a direct rival. That means Mbappé would be the more readily available purchase – and as one of Europe’s most powerful clubs, City could be a preferred destination for him.
#4 Liverpool
There have been plenty of reports linking the soon-to-be Premier League champions Liverpool with a move for Mbappé, and while the majority of them have appeared to be little more than paper talk or 'suggestions' from former players that even Jurgen Klopp has talked down. But could a move to Anfield actually make sense for the French superstar?
It’s definitely a possibility; firstly Liverpool’s style of play would suit Mbappe down to the ground. The World Cup winner is most effective playing as a wide forward, and of course, the Reds make more use of players like that than most clubs, with Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah both thriving under Klopp.
But who would Mbappe replace should he move to Anfield? Well, perhaps the answer is nobody. Klopp has thus far been largely fortunate with the lack of injuries to his trio of forwards – Mane, Salah and Roberto Firmino – but should he lose one of them for an extended period, Divock Origi would likely not be a strong enough long-term solution.
Should the Reds ink Mbappe, they would have more firepower than perhaps any team in Europe right now – and Klopp could easily rotate his frontline with no issues. And should the Frenchman join the Reds, it’d be hard to see anyone stopping them from retaining their Premier League crown – and also recapturing the Champions League.
Could they afford the transfer fee he would undoubtedly command? That’s another question – but if they did, they surely wouldn’t regret it.
