Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe is now closer to joining FC Barcelona than bitter rivals Real Madrid after they pulled out of the race to sign him as a reward to the Catalans for remaining with them in the European Super League project, according to Mundo Deportivo .
Madrid courted the Frenchman as a teenager before he ditched them to join PSG from Monaco in 2017.
In mid-2022, it appears as though the World Cup winner will make the switch from the French capital to its Spanish counterpart only for Mbappe to have a change of heart and renew terms with his current Qatari employers.
As the ink dried on the fresh deal that helped Mbappe top Forbes’ list of the World’s Highest-Paid Soccer Players, PSG paraded their star player at the Parc des Princes with a special “Mbappe 2025” jersey.
This was meant to be a nod to how long Mbappe is tied down for, but his terms actually expire in June 2024 although he has the option of extending for another additional year so he so wishes.
Radio station Cadena SER reported that Los Blancos pulled out of the race to sign Mbappe last month. Yet according to Mundo Deportivo, Barca is firmly in it and appears to be taking the lead as a dark horse.
President Joan Laporta has been buoyed by the boost the European Court of Justice (ECJ) appears to have given his club.
The ECJ ruled that European football governing body UEFAEFA -0.3% enjoys an unfair monopoly on continental football, which those behind the proposed breakaway European Super League (ESL) claimed as a victory.