Manchester City are reportedly plotting a swoop for Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe.
The Cityzens were keen on recruiting a centre-forward in the recent transfer window following the departure of Sergio Aguero to FC Barcelona upon the expiry of his contract. However, after the club failed to meet Tottenham Hotspur’s £150m valuation for striker Harry Kane, Pep Guardiola and co. have been left without a first-team striker for the season, with Gabriel Jesus flourishing in a new role out wide.
According to the Transfer Window Podcast (h/t The Daily Mail), Manchester City are determined to sign PSG striker Kylian Mbappe. The report adds that City’s wealthy owner Sheikh Mansour wants to make the French World Cup winner the club’s newest striker ‘at any cost’.
Kylian Mbappe, 22, is Real Madrid’s top target and the Spanish heavyweights could make a move in January after seeing two mega offers for the forward rejected by PSG in the final days of the summer transfer window. PSG remain hopeful of agreeing on a renewal but find themselves in a precarious situation over the future of the Frenchman, who has entered the final year of his contract at Parc des Princes.
Kylian Mbappe to Manchester City—The missing piece of the jigsaw?
Kylian Mbappe entering the final year of his contract and rejecting renewal offers from PSG has alerted a number of top clubs across Europe, including Manchester City.
After starting the new Premier League season disappointingly, as the Sky Blues were beaten 1-0 by Tottenham away, Pep Guardiola and his team regained some momentum and won their next three league games, scoring 11 goals and conceding none in the process.
However, they were held to a 0-0 stalemate by Southampton at the Etihad Stadium last weekend. Guardiola’s side didn’t have a great game against the Saints mustering just a single shot on target—one that further demonstrated their lack of a potent goalscorer at the top end of the pitch.
And even though the team did put in a rousing display against Chelsea in Matchday 6, not many will keep batting for the team to carry on without a recognised striker among their ranks.
Ferran Torres and Gabriel Jesus have done extremely well after swapping their roles since the start of the season but if the Cityzens are to continue their domination in England and win the elusive Champions League, they must prioritise recruiting a striker in the next window. To that end, Kylian Mbappe would be a brilliant fit at the Etihad Stadium.
Mbappe has established himself as one of the best players in the world in a very short period. Since joining Paris Saint-Germain from Ligue 1 rivals AS Monaco in 2017, he has become such an important player for both club and country. For the Parisian club, the 22-year-old has amassed a staggering total of 136 goals and 65 assists in just 179 appearances to date.
Blessed with great pace and bags of energy, the France international has the technical ability that goes hand in hand in with Guardiola’s tactical setup. Mbappe can run down the channels, link up with the attackers in the final third, use quick link-up play to create openings for his teammates and most importantly finish off chances ruthlessly in the box.
Truly, the former AS Monaco man would represent a top addition due to his star quality, experience and goal-scoring prowess at such a young age, whilst making him the ideal successor to Aguero.
Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe will both be on the move next summer and City will do wise to begin the machinations of a possible transfer involving their ideal target from now itself with all the super clubs in Europe expected to be in the mix.