Getty Image / Ian MacNicol
The Saudis have been big players in the international sports scene this summer. Whether it’s the government-backed Public Investment Fund or soccer clubs in the Saudi Professional League, they’ve set their sights on big-time targets, with PSG and France superstar Kylian Mbappé their biggest target yet.
Kylian Mbappé is considered by many to be the world’s best player at the moment. The 24-year-old has been the talisman for Paris Saint-Germain since he was 19 years old, scoring 135 goals in 149 appearances.
But, he is best-known for his remarkable performance for the French national team. Mbappé starred at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia as a 19-year-old, He scored four goals in the tournament, including one in the team’s triumph in the final over Croatia, 4-2. And, at last winter’s world cup in Qatar, he was even better, scoring 8 goals, including a hat trick in the team’s loss to Lionel Messi and Argentina in penalties in the finals.
But, Kylian Mbappé has long been unhappy with things at PSG, and his preference has clearly been to join Spanish superclub Real Madrid. With his contract expiring next year, it makes sense for Real Madrid to wait to sign him on a free transfer next year, instead of paying a world record fee for him.
But, that doesn’t make a lot of sense from PSG’s perspective, who clearly would like to receive the $200 million or so that it would be paid to buy him. So, the club is exploring a sale, determined not to let him leave on a free transfer. Think of it as a similar situation to Shohei Ohtani’s impending free agency and the dilemma the Los Angeles Angels face at the deadline.
And, the Saudis have a ton of money. They’ve already engineered a merger between their upstart golf league, LIV, and the PGA Tour. And, they’ve attracted major stars to the Saudi league over the past year, like Cristiano Ronaldo, Riyad Mahrez, N’Golo Kante and former Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema.
According to recent reports, the Saudis and club Al-Hilal are poised to make a massive bid for Kylian Mbappé.
🚨 PSG expect an Al-Hilal offer for Kylian Mbappe really soon. Saudi dealmakers prepared to pay over €200m. PSG believe an incoming bid could even be closer to €250m.🇸🇦 pic.twitter.com/KqFPe1q61P
— Ben Jacobs (@JacobsBen) July 22, 2023
Al-Hial has already added studs Kalidou Koulibaly, Rúben Neves, and Sergej Milinković-Savić this offseason. But, Mbappé would be the coup of all coups. Unfortunately for them, it seems rather unlikely he’d agree to such a move.