Duncan Castles has been speaking on the most recent episode of The Transfer Window, where he discussed the future of Paris Saint-Germain striker Kylian Mbappe and his links to Liverpool.
The French World Cup winner is one of the hottest properties within football and could be set to depart the Parc des Princes this summer, with his contract set to expire in 2022 and speculation mounting.
Mbappe joined the reigning Ligue 1 champions for a whopping £165.7m fee back in 2017 after he fired boyhood club Monaco to their first league title in 17 years.
However, after enjoying four successful seasons in Paris, the 22-year-old could be about to embark on the next chapter of his career, and Castles revealed that the youngster has outlined four potential destinations, with the Reds leading the way.
He said: “Of the clubs that are looking at Mbappe, the ones he has an interest in are Manchester United, Liverpool in particular, Real Madrid and Barcelona. Those are the four clubs that he has identified as potential candidates. I think Liverpool have an opportunity, should they choose to pursue it, to try and convince Mbappe to come to them rather than Real Madrid.
“But the big question mark there is, are FSG prepared to spend the kind of money required to take Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain – not so much in the transfer fee; PSG have been indicating that they would look for over €100m this summer; with one year to go, whether they’ll be able to get that is another matter – but in terms of the wages because Mbappe and his entourage are looking for a salary that will put them on a par with Neymar, if not above, and that would be way beyond Liverpool’s current structure.”
TIF Thoughts on Mbappe…
Mbappe is already regarded as one of the best players in the world despite his tender age, and if Jurgen Klopp can bring him to Anfield it would arguably be one of his biggest achievements during his time with the Reds.
The Merseyside club aren’t renowned for spending huge sums of money on players, though, and with their chances of qualifying for next season’s Champions League looking slim, it’s hard to see how they would be able to afford this transfer.
Nevertheless, anything is possible in football, and while Klopp is at the helm, Liverpool are likely to remain an attractive option for the world’s top talents, and it would certainly be entertaining for neutral supporters to watch Mbappe perform week in week out in the Premier League.