After a series of sources confirmed that Mbappe had agreed to join Real Madrid, PSG was said to have prepared for life without the French superstar.

On February 3, the prestigious French newspaper Le Parisien confirmed that striker Kylian Mbappe has decided to join Real Madrid after the 2023/24 season ends. Some other sources such as Santi Aouna or Julien Laurens also gave similar messages.

For its part, the French club has not yet released official information about the incident. This move makes fans believe that the Mbappe deal with Real Madrid has come to an end.

ESPN even reported that PSG has already determined the person who will replace the position that Mbappe will leave. The name mentioned is Rafael Leao of AC Milan.

PSG is said to have aimed to buy Rafael Leao to replace Mbappe who is about to return to Real Madrid (photo: CaughtOffside)

The Portuguese player has long been the target of PSG sports director Luis Campos because the two worked together at Lille. Leao is considered to have a similar playing style and skill set to Mbappe.

In addition, PSG is also said to be monitoring another player with similarities to Mbappe, Man Utd’s Marcus Rashford. However, the English striker is the highest-paid player at Old Trafford with a contract valid until 2028. Therefore, a transfer seems quite complicated.

But whether it’s Leao or Rashford, PSG is expected to have to spend no less than 100 million Euros to find a replacement for Mbappe. This amount of money is said to be the loyalty bonus that Mbappe agreed with the club not to receive in order to be able to leave for free in the summer of 2024.

Returning to Mbappe, ESPN journalist Julien Laurens said an announcement from the French striker will be made as early as next week. In Spain, Relevo newspaper said that Real Madrid is currently just waiting for Mbappe to tell PSG about his decision to leave.