Paris Saint-Germain are making a final attempt to persuade Kylian Mbappe to stay, with Real Madrid now confident that confirmation of the deal for the French star is “imminent”.
The French champions have spent months trying to convince the 23-year-old his future is better served at Parc des Princes and have offered to make him the best paid player in the game, and to build the club around him. There are more meetings planned in the next two days, but it is understood that at this point it would take "something crazy" to prevent Mbappe moving to the Bernabeu.
The offer that Madrid have made the forward is said to be considerably less than that which PSG can offer – possibly as much as €40m (£34m) less a year when everything is taken into account – but the feeling that has been playing on his mind is that it is time for change. Mbappe is another modern player who has a career idea mapped out, and has long held the ambition of playing for Madrid. Florentino Perez has sold him the vision of being the star the Spanish club is built around, similar to Cristiano Ronaldo, the French international's boyhood ideal.
Madrid are set to pay Mbappe around €50m (£43m) a year. There have been issues over the breakdown of image rights, with the player’s camp insisting they get 10 per cent, and the club insisting on their own policy, but it is hoped there has been a breakthrough in negotiations.
