PSG to sell Mbappe – which big money club will claim the superstar?

In a sensational turn of events, Paris Saint-Germain will be looking to sell their star forward Kylian Mbappe this summer after the prodigious French star told the club he would not be looking to renew his deal.

Mbappe has one year left on his deal with the option to extend to 2025. Instead of taking this option up, the 24-year-old told the club in writing that he would not be looking to stay on.

This has put PSG in a slightly awkward position, as the Paris club will either need to sell this summer or risk losing their No. 7 for free next summer. According the BBC, the PSG board is especially frustrated Mbappe’s letter was leaked to the media before they were made aware of his decision.

An Mbappe departure of course will be a massive blow to the French club. They have already lost Lionel Messi to Inter Miami, and their other star forward, Neymar Jr, is reportedly chasing a big money deal in the Saudi Pro League. As big of a loss as would be, they aren’t quite as integral to PSG as the young Mbappe is.

The Parisian club had seemingly thrown everything in the mix to keep Mbappe – already the club’s all-time goal scorer – including a reported €181m singing bonus, a €75m yearly wage, and a €71m loyalty bonus – as the club sought to keep as long term prospect, according to talkSPORT.

Let’s not forget that even French President Emmanuel Macron did his best to keep Mbappe on the PSG books with rivals Real Madrid circling after the World Cup last year. as Mbappe told ESPN. "He told me: 'I want you to stay," Mbappe said. "I don't want you to leave now. You are so important for the country... Of course when the president says that to you, that counts."

With a sale now looking likely to happen in the coming months, there will be no shortage of interested parties. However, not every club will have the means to pick him up.

Real Madrid is now almost certainly the frontrunner to secure Mbappe’s signature, with the Spanish side and Mbappe dancing around a deal for over a year now.

It’s complicated only by the fact that Los Blancos won’t be able to pay him as much as much he would have made in Paris – with almost a quarter of the PSG budget being spent on the star forward.

This probably doesn’t matter too much as Mbappe has made no secret of his desire to win the Champions League. This would have only increased after PSG’s tough round of 16 elimination in the elite European competition this year.

“The next level? Win the Champions League, I think. I have already played a final, a semi-final, the quarter-finals, the Round of 16...”, he told tout le Sport this year. “I have done everything except win (smiles). That’s all I need.”

Mbappe apparently believes that Real Madrid, who are the most successful club in the Champions League with 14 title wins, will give him the best chance to do this.

Real Madrid, for their part, have tried to downplay their interest in Mbappe since the last deal went sour, sources within the club told AS in March this year they would only get him as a free agent. We’ll see if this news changes anything….

English clubs are also circulating, with Chelsea and Manchester United are also reportedly urgently working to get the Frenchman to play in the EPL, according to the Sun.

Mbappe, who initially joined PSG in 2017 on loan from Monaco before securing a 180 million euro permanent transfer has dazzled in the French capital, bringing in 212 goals in 260 games.

In the French team, he has netted 38 goals in 68 matches, notably including a memorable hat-trick in the previous year's final in Qatar, despite France's unfortunate loss to Argentina in a penalty shootout.

In each of the past five seasons, Mbappe has emerged as Ligue 1's leading goal scorer, accumulating a total of five league titles during his six-year tenure at PSG. Regrettably, PSG's performance in the 2022-23 season concluded solely with the Ligue 1 title, as they once again fell short of clinching the Champions League trophy, suffering elimination in the last-16 stage against Bayern Munich.

Will he go chasing his Champions League dream in Real Madrid, or will a redeemed Manchester United under Erik ten Hag be able to make this happen for the young forward, one of the greatest players of our generation? We'll find out over the summer!