Kylian Mbappe has become the main obstacle for Real Madrid to conclude new contracts for the attack. Although the need to find a centre-forward has become more acute since the departure of Karim Benzema to Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia, Florentino Perez decided to dismiss all the options he had on the table and wait for the Paris Saint-Germain star. And finally, this year he failed to land, so they ran out of reference striker.
At the Santiago Bernabeu, quite a few names were offered, which were abandoned because of the world champion in Russia. Among the most prominent we can find Harry Kane, who most closely resembled the former team captain in profile. His contract with Tottenham Hotspur expired in 2024, so he was available at an affordable price. But they did not take advantage of the opportunity and left Bayern free.
Thomas Tuchel became the scorer he asked for so much, and for a reasonable price, around 100 million euros. There was also a lot of talk about Dusan Vlahovic, who could move on loan from Juventus to Turin, but this option did not convince either Carlo Ancelotti or the board of directors. The same goes for Romelu Lukaku.which was not part of Chelsea’s plans, and as a result, he joined the ranks of Jose Mourinho’s Roma.
Continuing the list of cracks that Madrid refused to wait for Mbappe: we have Jonathan David and Vitor Roque. The former has already established himself as a global star through his performances at Lille, but Madrid have not made any official offer. But with the Brazilian gem, they had many doubts, and they made it easier for Barça, who eventually managed to take him away from Atlético Paranaense, although he would not land in Europe until January.
And it’s embarrassing to forget Victor Osimhen from Napoli., which was personally recommended by Ancelotti, but rejected by Florentino Pérez. Flamengo’s Pedro Guilherme never seemed like a real possibility.
Randal Kolo Muani also eliminated
Finally, we find Randal Colo Muani, who sounded like “Plan B” to Mbappe, after it was confirmed that he would continue to perform at the Parque de los Principes. But the high price demanded by Eintracht Frankfurt led to Madrid excluding him.
Curiously, he joined PSG in the last hours of the market.