Mbappe on loan to PSG as £166m deal sealed
Paris St-germain have finally agreed a deal to sign Kylian Mbappe from Monaco for £166.4million.
The unprecedented transfer entails Mbappe signing on a seasonlong loan, with an agreement that the club will make the deal permanent next summer.
The arrangement is to try to ensure that PSG comply with the demands of Uefa’s Financial Fair Play rules which they are already struggling to meet following the signing of Neymar for a world-record £200million. It remains to be seen how Uefa – and Europe’s other big clubs – react to the structure of the deal and whether it falls foul of the regulation not to “circumvent the objectives” of FFP.
Mbappe met up with the France national squad yesterday ahead of their forthcoming World Cup qualifiers following the agreement of the move, which has been reluctantly accepted by Monaco.
The French champions had hoped that the striker, 18, would sign a new contract and stay for one more season. But his refusal to agree a deal and his steadfast desire to leave and join PSG this summer has led to the sale. Monaco also accepted that they may not get anywhere near the same scale of fee for Mbappe next summer.
It is an incredible deal, with one club agreeing to allow their most prized asset to go on loan to their main rivals, but it was the only way, it appears, it could be done.
PSG have beaten off competition from Real Madrid – who Monaco would have preferred to sell to – for the hottest young property in world football. PSG now have to try to sell some players before the transfer window closes on Thursday to raise cash to ensure they balance the books following the Neymar deal.
It may mean one of their big names being sacrificed, with Angel Di Maria the most likely departure, although there is strong interest in Julian Draxler. They would prefer to keep Draxler but have to bring in more than £92million, with a deal to sell Serge Aurier for £23million to Tottenham still to go through.