Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal have made a record €300m bid for France striker Kylian Mbappe.
Paris Saint-Germain confirmed the offer for its player and has given Al-Hilal permission to open negotiations directly with the player.
Instead, he plans to walk away as a free agent at the end of the upcoming season when he is widely expected to join Real Madrid.
PSG cut Mbappe from their preseason tour of Japan on Saturday, with the French club determined to complete a transfer for him unless he can be convinced to sign a new contract.
The amount offered by Al Hilal would set a new world record for a transfer fee, eclipsing the 222m that PSG paid Barcelona to sign Neymar in 2017.
For his part, Mbappe won’t buckle under the pressure he’s being put under by Paris Saint-Germain to either sign a new contract or leave the club this summer, according to Diario AS.
The newspaper’s headline claims Mbappe is “not daunted” by threats that he could be left out of the team if he fails to agree an extension beyond June 2024, saying he’d be willing to spend a season frozen out in the stands before joining Real Madrid on a free transfer next summer.
Both Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti and midfielder Federico Valverde were asked about Mbappe after their 3-2 friendly win over AC Milan at the Rose Bowl, Pasadena on Sunday.
Ancelotti refused to get involved, saying “I think I’ve answered all the questions” before quickly moving on, when asked about the forward’s PSG absence in his postmatch news conference.
“There’s not much I can say,” Valverde added. “Mbappe is one of the best in the world. Not just now, he will be for many years. As a fan I enjoy watching him play.”
