Real Madrid are in advanced negotiations with Borussia Dortmund over the signing of Jude Bellingham. With talks proceeding in the right direction, it appears to be only a matter of time before an official announcement is made.
The Englishman’s transfer to Santiago Bernabeu would be one of the summer transfer window’s biggest moves. After all, Los Blancos are expected to shell out over €100 million for the protege.
Yesterday, reports suggested that the Merengues could do one better and go after Kylian Mbappe in addition to Bellingham in June. The headlining news unsurprisingly took the world of football by storm.
Josep Pedrerol of El Chiringuito, however, stands firmly against the claims made yesterday. He reports that Real Madrid will not negotiate with Paris Saint-Germain this summer and will thus not sign Mbappe.
A part of the reason involved could have to do with the economics. The overall operation to bring both players to Spain could cost in excess of €250 million, a number high by any standards for a single transfer window.
After all, Los Blancos have positions like full-back and the right-wing that need more urgent signings.
More importantly, Eden Hazard’s decision to stay at the club could affect Real Madrid’s planning for next season. The Belgian is the team’s highest earner and it might be steep for the club to sign two players on high salaries while he is still around.
Florentino Perez could thus return to the market in pursuit of Mbappe next summer when Hazard is out of contract.
If completed, the move would unite Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo, Kylian Mbappe and Eduardo Camavinga and set up one of world football’s most daunting young cores.
Mbappe has scored 24 goals and provided four assists in just 30 Ligue 1 appearances this season. He averages 1.6 key passes per game and has created 15 big chances.
