The football transfer world record is set to be smashed as Real Madrid are understood to have agreed a 180 million euro deal with Monaco for Kylian Mbappe.
Pending the potential 222m euro transfer of Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain, this move would beat the 105m euro record set by Paul Pogba last year as Los Blancos hope to seal the striker’s signature in a matter of days.
Set at 180m euros, Mbappe’s fee will be split down to 160m euros up front with 20m euros worth of add-ons as the Frenchman pursues his career at Madrid, although the value of those variables may be higher, towards 30m euros.
Monaco had originally requested 190m euros but now coach Zinedine Zidane has given his blessing to the new agreement in principle, following a meeting with club president Florentino Perez and general director Jose Angel Sanchez out in Los Angeles.
The move comes after Alvaro Morata left for Chelsea for a fee of 80m euros, opening the way for Mbappe to challenge the BBC dominance at Real, with the teenager thought to desire an immediate transfer rather than a year’s loan back in Ligue 1.
Earning 7m euros net per year on a six-year contract, the progress on Mbappe’s LaLiga switch comes amid Monaco’s public statement against ‘great European clubs’ making illegal advances for the player’s signature, which was believed to be a veiled reference to meetings with Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.
The Citizens look to be out of the equation now as they are aware of the starlet’s close proximity to a Real move, with PSG also struggling to convince their French counterparts to sell to a domestic rival as they focus their efforts on Barcelona’s Neymar.
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