Marca dropped the bombshell in the early hours of Monday morning, February 19th: Kylian Mbappe has already signed his contract with Real Madrid.
Sources close to the negotiations have not yet confirmed this total agreement to Flashscore, but they do warn that everything is on track and very close to being closed in a satisfactory way for both parties.
But what has changed this time compared to previous summers, when PSG always kept their star player? Basically, it is the French player who has personally taken charge of his future.
The reality is diametrically different from 2022 when he barely had the chance to decide on his own.
At that time, his entourage and, above all, his mother, Fayza Lamari, had managed to turn around a soap opera that should have ended with the player wearing white.
Finally, the 2018 World Cup winner with France has said "enough" in the face of the excessive control demanded by his agent. Fayza Lamari had to respect her son's wishes: the agreement with the 14-time European champion had to come to fruition, as Kyky's decision to travel to Spain had been made for a long time.
The 'Les Bleus' captain's representative has ended up facilitating the negotiations. She has been in regular contact with the Real Madrid board for several weeks, more specifically with Jose Angel Sanchez, Florentino Perez's right-hand man and the person chosen to carry out this important operation.
The conditions that the Real Madrid general manager conveyed to the 'tortoise's' entourage in terms of salary were very clear: Mbappe will be the best paid of the white squad, but the difference with Jude Bellingham and Vinicius (formula of €20+4 million) will be minimal.
That means no more than €25 million gross per year, including bonuses, something that would put him narrowly ahead of Toni Kroos.
The image rights issue
At the Santiago Bernabeu, they were very clear that they were not going to alter the good atmosphere in the dressing room by putting the keys to Real Madrid in Mbappé's hands. That started with not skipping the wage scale that has been in place for so many years.
However, they had in mind that they needed to open their hand in other ways to balance the scales and prevent the Frenchman from feeling he was being undervalued.
The key to keeping him happy is to tackle in an innovative way for the club the distribution of image rights, a point that is very important for Kylian's clan. For the first time in its history, the club is willing to give the lion's share of the cake to a footballer.
The initial idea was to leave the deal at 50-50, with the possibility of breaking the spear in favour of the Frenchman by reaching 60-40.
To get an idea of the significance of this signing, one only has to look at the fact that not even Cristiano Ronaldo was shown this deference. The Portuguese legend has always split advertising revenue 50-50 with Madrid.
As Flashscore News has learned, negotiations remain open on this issue, as Fayza Lamari, in her insatiable quest to maximise the financial return on her son's professional activity, continues to demand more.
In fact, sources close to PSG and the president, Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, claim that both parties have to finish negotiating the image rights and that the interest of the Premier League is being used to obtain a better percentage.
Wants to be at the Olympics
Another important issue for Mbappe is the Paris 2024 Olympics. The French player has a great desire to be part of the event.
Although he has already stated in a press conference with France that, if it is not possible to attend, he would accept his club's conditions, he has assured his inner circle that he still dreams of being at the event in his hometown in July.
In this respect, Flashcore News has been able to confirm that Real Madrid would not be against letting him take part in the great global sporting event that takes place every four years and that this time he will be very close to home.
Whatever happens this time, the end of the film is already known: Fayza Lamari is obliged to come to terms with Jose Angel Sanchez.
They will have to accept Real Madrid's conditions and arrive with humility. The most important thing at Valdebebas is the good atmosphere of the group, which is ahead of all egos. Image rights? The agreement will come. Olympic Games? The same. And the announcement? At the end of the season, as Real Madrid always do.
This time, yes, Mbappe will be a Real Madrid player. After seven years of waiting.
