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What's the story?
In the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo's departure to Juventus, Real Madrid have understandably embarked on a hunt for the Portuguese superstar's ideal replacement. The club has, in fact, been linked to a number of top stars such as Eden Hazard, Harry Kane and Robert Lewandowski, among others.
However, reports from TransferMarketWeb (via TEAMtalk) claim that Florentino Perez has narrowed down on his options and has set his sights on France and Paris Saint-Germain superstar, Kylian Mbappe. The report claims that a bid in the region of €300 million was reportedly submitted by Los Blancos
In case you didn't know...
Cristiano Ronaldo surprisingly decided to call it quits on his time at Madrid in search of a new challenge, and subsequently signed for Juventus last week. Ronaldo, during his time at Real Madrid, became the club's most successful player of all time.
While the likes of Chelsea's Eden Hazard, Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane and Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski have been linked with moves to Real Madrid, Kylian Mbappe, aged just 19, proves to be the best long-term replacement for Ronaldo. Further, Mbappe has only just won the World Cup with France and is bound to be high on confidence.
The heart of the matter
Mbappe first rose to prominence for his Ligue 1-winning performances with AS Monaco 2 seasons ago. He then moved to Paris Saint-Germain last summer before helping them win the domestic treble.
The 19-year-old then smashed a number of records at the 2018 FIFA World Cup as he became France's joint-leading goalscorer as they went on to lift the trophy. Naturally, his value has skyrocketed, much like the demand for him.
Also read: 87% of France's World Cup-winning team are immigrants or children of immigrants
Almost every top European club seems to be monitoring him and it's only a matter of time before they start making moves. Real Madrid, it would seem, have beaten them all to it by allegedly submitting the aforementioned bid.
However, the report also states that PSG believe that Mbappe is simply too valuable to lose and have subsequently shot down Real Madrid's initial offer.
The 19-year-old himself addressed these rumours after France's World Cup win, as he said:
"I will stay with PSG, continuing on my path with them. I am at the beginning of my career."
Real Madrid, though, are not the kind to simply give up and will be expected to follow the first bid up with a better one.
Video:
Oh boy, Kylian Mbappe is something else altogether!
What's next?
It isn't entirely impossible to think that Paris Saint-Germain could allow either Mbappe or Neymar to leave, considering the toll these players take on the club's Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations.
Both players are among the best in the world and will logically attract a lot of attention from multiple clubs. However, at the young age of 19, Mbappe is, by far, one of the most exciting prospects in world football at the moment and it will be extremely interesting to see how this transfer saga pans out.
