Barcelona will try to intercept Real Madrid’s deal for PSG megastar: French sources

In a huge development, French publication L’Equipe is claiming that Barcelona are set to rival Real Madrid in pursuit of Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe in the summer.

The 23-year-old French forward is in the final few months of his contract at PSG and is all set to depart on a Bosman deal at the end of the season. And, for the longest time, it has been believed that the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner is heading to Real Madrid.

Los Blancos have been working to get the deal over the line since last year and reports claimed that they had an agreement in place to secure Mbappe’s signature.

However, as per the aforementioned report, Barcelona are plotting to intercept Real Madrid’s deal for the former AS Monaco man, with their efforts to sign Erling Haaland unlikely to yield the desired result.

Indeed, Barça have been pursuing the Borussia Dortmund goalscorer with great intent, but seem set to miss out on his signing, with Manchester City emerging as favourites to sign him.

Now, the Catalan giants have seemingly diverted their attention to Mbappe, with the report claiming that the club feel that a deal for the PSG ace will be cheaper than one for Haaland.

The Blaugrana are confident of putting together an attractive financial package for the 23-year-old due to their €595 million loan from Goldman Sachs and their €70 million per year sponsorship deal with Spotify.

It is claimed that Mbappe, for his part, has not finalised on a move to Real Madrid and is willing to hear any potential offers from Barcelona before he makes a decision as he wishes to join the best sporting project.

Back in 2017, Mbappe had met with representatives from Manchester City and Liverpool to listen to what they had to offer before he signed for PSG. It indicates that he will only decide after assessing all his options, which bodes well for Barça.

The journalist who published the news, Jose Barroso, is one of the most reliable sources at L’Equipe and is also very close to Mbappe’s camp.

It is also stated that Barcelona want Mbappe to meet manager Xavi Hernandez before he decides on his future.

The 42-year-old has done a fine job since taking over the reins at Camp Nou and if he is able to convince the French international to sign for the Catalans over Real Madrid, it would be no short of a sensational coup for Barça.