Liverpool told dream signing Mbappe could see value drop to bargain fee

Kylian Mbappe

Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe could see his transfer value plummet to an eye-wateringly low amount due to the economic crisis currently engulfing the football world.

Mbappe, 21, has starred for PSG since in a €180million deal in 2017, but regularly the subject of transfer speculation amid strong reports linking him with both Liverpool and Real Madrid.

Reports have claimed Liverpool have the funds to sign the France international, but Jurgen Klopp, who met the player’s family members in an bid to convince him to sign for Liverpool back three summers ago, says they have “absolutely no chance” of signing the player.

“Buying this calibre of player is difficult,” said Klopp. “I don’t see any club at the moment who can buy Kylian Mbappe from PSG. I don’t see any club, that is how it is. And we are involved in the clubs that cannot do it. It is as easy as that.

“OK, from a sporting point of view, there are not a lot of reasons to not sign him. What a player he is. But it is about the money of course. No chance. Absolutely no chance. Sorry for killing that story.”

However, prominent French politician Daniel Cohn-Bendit believes world-transfer values will plummet due to the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic – with the Ligue 1 market, in particular, being badly hit.

The 75-year-old – who has often been caught up in political scandals during his career – highlighted the example of Mbappe, seen as France’s biggest home-based player, as to how prices could drop.

“Tomorrow, Mbappe will cost around €35-40M at most, not €200M, the MEP told French outlet Ouest-France.

“Who is going to be able to buy him?

“There is going to be new regulations, and this will affect wages and image rights.”

Whether that means either Liverpool or Real make their move for Mbappe remains to be seen, and even in the event of his valuation plummeting, it seems highly unlikely PSG would look to sell.

Furthermore, reports earlier this year claimed PSG were, in fact, looking to pin the forward down to a new deal.

 

 

However, that has not halted rumours linking the player with Liverpool and Mbappe has done little to silence the speculation by openly discussing his admiration for Klopp’s side and what they have achieved so far this season.

“What Liverpool do in this moment is amazing,” Mbappe, speaking in January, told BBC Sport.

“They’re like a machine, they’ve found a rhythm and are like ‘we play again, we play again’.

“They’ve lost zero games. When you watch you think everything’s easy but that’s not easy. The guys are focused, they play games every three days and they win, they win, they win.

“Now the problem is that everybody watches Liverpool, and everybody watches what we can do against them, so now they have to show they are strong again but it’s a very good team with a very good manager.”

 

Mbappe on PSG future

Discussing his future in France, Mbappe added: “Now I’m with PSG and I’m 100% with the club. I want to help the club grow this season, to win a lot of titles, so for me it’s not good to talk about [my future].

“I think about the club because the club helped me. I came here at 18. I was a talent but I was not a superstar. Now I’m a superstar, thanks to PSG and the French national team.

“I have to stay calm and stay focused on PSG. After that, at the end of the season, we will see. But now I’m focused on my game.”

Liverpool’s efforts to sign Timo Werner, meanwhile, have prompted another response from RB Leipzig with their head of football name-checking Klopp in his latest interview.