Man Utd transfer: Mbappe rejects stunning last-gasp £598m offer from ‘desperate’ Ratcliffe
New Man Utd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe made a late bid to bring Paris Saint-Germain superstar Kylian Mbappe to Old Trafford, according to reports.
Ratcliffe completed a deal to buy 25 per cent of the Premier League club from the Glazers last week with the British billionaire taking over footballing operations.
One of his first jobs has been to revamp the recruitment structure with Ratcliffe hoping to appoint Newcastle’s Dan Ashworth as sporting director, while Omar Berrada has arrived as the club’s new CEO from arch-rivals Man City.
Man Utd have been criticised over the last decade for making many mistakes in the transfer market with the club spending huge money on flops like Paul Pogba, Antony and Jadon Sancho.
And Ratcliffe is hoping that those days are in the past despite claims Ratcliffe has already attempted to spend huge money on PSG forward Mbappe, who is available on a free transfer.
Widespread reports announced earlier this month that Mbappe has told PSG that he will leave in the summer with Real Madrid his most likely destination, although there has not been an official announcement from the La Liga giants.
And now Spanish publication OK Diario claim that Mbappe signed his Real Madrid contract on February 13 and that the France international ‘rejected an offer from Manchester United a week earlier’.
It is understood that Man Utd made ‘a formal proposal of €500m for five seasons, including a transfer bonus of €200m’ in a ‘desperate offer that they transmitted to his mother and representative, Fayza Lamari’.
Ratcliffe’s ‘intention was to hit the table with the signing of Mbappé and return United to the top of the world ranking of the richest clubs in the world’ but the 25-year-old ‘was very clear this time that he only wanted to play for Real Madrid’.
Bringing an update on the latest developments surrounding Mbappe’s future, Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column: “We are at the final stages of the Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid story – the player’s mother, his camp, his lawyers are all working on final small important points and then it will be time to sign.
“According to sources close to the situation, Mbappe’s signing-on fee with Real Madrid is going to be more than €100m – it will not be paid in one go, Real Madrid will have the option to pay it as an extra to his salary over the next five years.
“Mbappe’s salary will be in the range of other stars like Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham, but for sure the signing fee will be huge, more than €100m. This is one of the final details they are discussing before entering into the signing stage.
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“Many English clubs have been linked with Mbappe down the years, including Manchester United, but they were never working on that one. However, next summer Man United will bring in a new striker, the plan looks very clear.
“For now Sir Jim Ratcliffe is preparing by building a new structure and looking to make key appointments to the board, but a striker is a part of the plan as well.
“Manchester United have not decided who to go for next, but they want one more to come in alongside Rasmus Hojlund. We’ll have to see if it’s a young striker like Mathys Tel or Joshua Zirkzee, or a more experienced player to complement the young Hojlund.
“The new director will be a crucial step for this project, but a striker is likely to be a priority. Internal discussions will take place, and we could have a decision on who they’ll pursue by around April or May.”
