According to AS, Real Madrid are ready to make a galactico level signing this summer, with Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland the names being touted.

Real Madrid are reportedly looking to spend big in the 2024 summer transfer window, by adding an elite attacker to the squad to partner with the likes of Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham.

They currently sit 2nd in La Liga on 32 points, only two points behind suprise league leaders Girona on 34 points. Madrid have won 10, drew two and lost only one game so far in their opening 13 La Liga fixtures.

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Mbappe has made 15 appearances in all competitions for PSG this campaign so far, scoring 15 goals and providing one assist in 1,241 minutes of football.

He has helped PSG to top of Ligue 1, sitting on 27 points, one point above second placed Nice. They are also second of their Champions League group on six points, one point off first placed Dortmund who have seven points after four games.

Haaland has made 18 appearances in all competitions for Manchester City so far this campaign, scoring 17 goals and providing four assists in 1,510 minutes.

He has helped Manchester City into first place in the Premier League on 28 points, one point above second placed Liverpool and third placed Arsenal. City are also top of their Champions League group on 12 points, winning four out of four so far.

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The PSG striker scored his 300^th career goal on Saturday night reaching the milestone quicker than both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

Kylian Mbappe is undoubtedly one of the best talents on the planet and has demonstrated this with club and country.

The 24-year-old was the star of France’s 14-0 massacre of Gibraltar on Saturday evening, completing his hat-trick with a tremendous strike from close to the halfway line.

His 17^th career hat trick coincided with his 300^th career goal, at just 24, he accomplished the feat one year quicker than Messi and three years sooner than Ronaldo.

Kylian Mbappe has reached 300 career goals before turning 25 in December

That’s as many as Messi and Neymar when they were 25 and Cristiano Ronaldo at 27 pic.twitter.com/Yh4pU1znrP

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) November 20, 2023

Even Thierry Henry, who Mbappe has been most frequently compared to, didn’t reach the milestone until he was 30.

After overtaking Antoine Griezmann in France’s top scorer’s chart, it is only a matter of time before he passes the Arsenal legend who is only five goals away.

He will then set his sights on Olivier Giroud at the top of the all-time list with just ten more goals.

Jean-Pierre Papin, who is tenth on the list, believes ‘the best is yet to come’ for the PSG man.

“Such precocity, such regularity, is rare, almost unique. He’s someone who, if he is not injured, can manage to score between 45 and 55 goals each year, for years to come.” He told L’Equipe.

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Randal Kolo Muani certainly delivered in emphatic style for France in their Euro 2024 qualifiers.

It took a while for the deadlock to be broken in Greece, but when the goal arrived it was magnificent.

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The ball was worked out to Kolo Muani down France’s right side, and he unleashed an unstoppable Exocet into the roof of the net.

If the score remains the same, France will have qualified for Euro 2024 with a perfect eight wins from eight and only one goal conceded.

??| GOAL: Kolo Muani scores for France.

Greece 0-1 France

pic.twitter.com/ajhSNg86as

— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) November 21, 2023

?GOAL | Greece 0-1 France | Kolo Muani

Follow our partner page @ocontextsoccer pic.twitter.com/Ek6rFl5IqP

— VAR Tático (@vartatico) November 21, 2023

Pictures from TFI Direct and Viaplay

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France set a UEFA Euro qualifying record by thrashing Gibraltar 14-0 in their EURO 2024 Qualifier on Saturday night but Kylian Mbappe stole the show.

The PSG winger is now only eight goals shy of becoming France’s all-time leading goalscorer after bagging a hat-trick in Nice.

Mbappe opened his account from the spot on the half-hour mark before he grabbed his brace with a tidy finish in the 74th minute.

Then just eight minutes later, he completed his hat-trick with an incredible goal close to the middle of the pitch to make it 12-0 France.

pic.twitter.com/parWHXwDNA

— magicsterl (@magicsterl) November 18, 2023

Video courtesy of ViaPlay.

Kylian Mbappe has overtaken Antoine Griezmann in France’s all-time top scorers list! #BBCFootball pic.twitter.com/Tb8hAMPCEK

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) November 18, 2023

France have broken a UEFA Euro qualifying record for largest margin of victory #EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/KX8kZKSc1M

— Viaplay Sports UK (@ViaplaySportsUK) November 18, 2023

The post Video: Kylian Mbappe completes his hat-trick with an unbelievable goal as France break UEFA record appeared first on CaughtOffside.

The PSG winger scored his first of the game before Kylian Mbappe bagged his brace to make it 11-0 against Gibraltar in Nice.

Despite coming into this game as confirmed Group B winners, France put 10 men Gibraltar to the sword in a ruthless thrashing at the Allianz Riviera Stadium.

By half-time alone, it was 7-0 to Didier Deschamps’s side but they have now scored their 10th and 11th goals with very little time remaining.

Ousmane Dembele grabbed his first of the night with a left-footed strike past the goalkeeper before Mbapper scored his second.

| GOAL: Dembele makes it 10!

France 10-0 Gibraltar

pic.twitter.com/k8FTEnGXka

— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) November 18, 2023

Video courtesy of TF1 Direct.

TEN for France!

Ousmane Dembélé scores as the hosts get into double figures #EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/5nrhOhuOYD

— Viaplay Sports UK (@ViaplaySportsUK) November 18, 2023

| GOAL: Mbappe has a brace!

France 11-0 Gibraltar

pic.twitter.com/R47MRI4N6s

— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) November 18, 2023

Video courtesy of TF1 Direct.

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Les Bleus are not messing around against Gibraltar as they go four goals up against 10 men after just half an hour on the clock.

France is already qualified as the winner of Group B after a European Championship qualifying campaign that saw them win seven out of seven games.

It has been a rough night for Gibraltar who conceded after just three minutes after a Ethan Santos own goal before Marcus Thuram scored just one minute later.

Warren Zaire-Emery then scored before he was taken off injured after a red card tackle from Santos.

Kylian Mbappe converted from the spot shortly after to make it 4-0.

| GOAL: Mbappe scores the penalty.

France 4-0 Gibraltar

pic.twitter.com/bFaAJD5mY4

— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) November 18, 2023

Video courtesy of TF1 Direct.

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Erling Haaland’s agent, Rafaela Pimenta, certainly put the cat amongst the pigeons this week regarding her client’s future at Man City.

“Erling is the master of own destiny, always,” she said to Relevo (h/t Fabrizio Romano on X).

“He will always do what’s good for him and for Man City. When they all are open to make a change, it will happen. Erling will always be respectful.

“For sure respect has to be on both club and player side. I’ve no doubts, Man City will respect him.

“If something has to happen one day, we will agree on every step together with the club. It’s always about respect”

The Norwegian striker’s current deal ends in 2025, and as 90Min report, Real Madrid and Barcelona are still interested in bringing him to Spain.

Furthermore, though there doesn’t to be any panic at this point, it’s clear that Man City are in a bit of a race against time to get any new terms or a higher release clause sorted, making it more difficult for potential buyers to acquire him.

With Kylian Mbappe expected to move to Los Blancos next summer, a switch to Barcelona 12 months later would ignite a battle that would be comparable to the Messi v Ronaldo clashes of the past decade.

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Were Madrid able to afford Haaland, seeing him play alongside the French World Cup winner, assisted by the likes of Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler et al would surely place Los Blancos back at the pinnacle of world football.

For now, City will need to work hard and fast to persuade Haaland that, in fact, his future remains on the blue side of Manchester.

If he can come out and put any rumours to bed, then there’s no story here, however, all the while he remains silent, those rumours will continue.

The post Man City in race against time to change terms of Erling Haaland’s contract appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Last month saw Lionel Messi crowned the winner of the Ballon d’Or for a record-extending eight-time and Kylian Mbappe has had his say on the decision.

The PSG star is destined to win the award sometime in the future but this year was once again beaten to the biggest individual prize in football by Messi.

The World Cup winner was the favourite alongside Man City’s Erling Haaland for the award and speaking about Messi’s win, Mbappe feels that the 36-year-old was the deserved winner.

The French superstar said via Fabrizio Romano: “Messi had to win Ballon d’Or, he won the World Cup, he’s one of the greatest in history, if not the greatest for me.

“Haaland had a great season, me too, but next to winning the World Cup it doesn’t weigh much. Leo deserved it”.

?? Mbappé: “Messi had to win Ballon d’Or, he won the World Cup, he’s one of the greatest in history, if not the greatest for me”.

“Haaland had a great season, me too, but next to winning World Cup it doesn't weigh much. Leo deserved it”. pic.twitter.com/Ig7uqrZm77

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 17, 2023

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Messi’s eighth Ballon d’Or was strangely debated by some people as if the Argentina star wasn’t the clear winner.

As Mbappe said, Messi won the World Cup alongside putting together one of the greatest, if not the greatest, individual campaigns the tournament has ever seen.

The 36-year-old also helped Inter Miami to their first-ever trophy and was immense for PSG prior to the World Cup beginning.

This was likely the Barcelona legend’s last Ballon d’Or and could the 2024 edition belong to Mbappe?

The post “Haaland had a great season” – Kylian Mbappe comments on Lionel Messi’s Ballon d’Or win appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Originally published on the Daily Briefing thedailybriefing.io

Don’t read too much into Luis Enrique’s dig at Kylian Mbappe

A few eyebrows were raised by Luis Enrique criticising Kylian Mbappe after he scored a hat-trick against Reims, with the PSG manager admitting he still wasn’t happy with the player, demanding more from him despite his goal-scoring heroics.

There is, however, nothing to read into after Enrique’s recent comments regarding Mbappe. It is no secret that the Spanish tactician would like to see his French superstar working harder for the team and he is not the first PSG boss to want that.

It has been a funny period for Mbappe on the pitch with his form blowing hot and cold, but his future is far from set in stone at present. It is unlikely that we will see any major development on that front before the end of 2023 with much of Mbappe’s decision likely to hinge upon how PSG fare in the Champions League this term.

There have been signs of progress under Luis Enrique and the post-November internationals run up until the winter break could prove to an important period in terms of how Mbappe and PSG’s outlook is come early 2024. Overall, though, the players are largely happy with PSG’s new direction and the fact that the Spaniard is able to offer constructive criticism of his star player so publicly shows how things are changing at Parc des Princes compared with the former player power, which dictated that individuals came before the collective and the club.

What does the future hold for Presnel Kimpembe?

Presnel Kimpembe is expected to return to action before the end of this year after a lengthy injury layoff. Assuming that he returns to full form and fitness, the youth academy graduate is a player that PSG will want to keep beyond 2024, despite him currently being close to the end of his contract and linked with Barcelona by some outlets.

Kimpembe has been interested in assessing his potential options away from Paris in the past, but much has changed since there was last any serious interest. The current French and Parisien talent push that PSG are on has been received positively by the defender who is keen to get back on the pitch to be a part of it. Kimpembe also has his France international berth to attempt to win back in time for Euro 2024 so it will be a crucial second part of the season for him.

My personal feeling based on Kimpembe’s attachment to the club but also Marquinhos’ increasingly complicated situation in terms of form and questionable leadership is that a full recovery for the Frenchman could see PSG fielding offers for the Brazilian from next summer. Who Luis Enrique chooses to pair or whether he goes with three central defenders over the second half of the campaign will be very interesting to see.

Rudi Garcia looks like yesterday’s man after Napoli sacking

We’ve seen a big-name French manager sacked this week as Rudi Garcia was shown the door by Napoli after a poor start to the season. Garcia was a surprise appointment as Napoli boss in the first place, although Walter Mazzarri being chosen as his replacement is arguably an even bigger shock.

Following in Luciano Spalletti’s footsteps was always going to be a tough ask after last season’s memorable Serie A title triumph, but there is a growing feeling within the game that Garcia is yesterday’s man. That will not stop him getting another job in France with a few decent roles potentially available in the coming weeks, but he is unlikely to attract interest from a top club right now.

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Former Marseille boss Igor Tudor was also linked with the position at Napoli, though he ended up being overlooked, which was a bit of a surprise, but that sounds more likely that decision owed to the fact that Tudor was not so keen on such a short posting, with Mazzarri only taking a contract until the end of the season.

Interestingly, Tudor’s replacement in Marseille – Marcelino – is already back in work with Villarreal. Tudor is unlikely to resurface in France, but his stock remains high in Italy despite not landing a tricky Napoli gig.

What to expect from Christopher Nkunku’s Chelsea return

There has been some welcome good news for Christopher Nkunku – one of France’s most exciting talents who has been prevented from getting started at Chelsea so far due to injury, though he’s now closing in on a return to the team.

Regardless of Chelsea’s upturn in form lately, Nkunku will be a starter for Mauricio Pochettino once he is fully fit. It might take some time for the France international to get back to his best, but he will be keen to make up for lost time and has his spot with Les Bleus to fight for as well.

I suspect that he will have a fairly immediate impact in front of goal as Chelsea seek to make a push for a European qualification spot over the second half the season. The Blues need to be wary of recurring injury issues with their summer signing, but he undoubtedly has the quality to improve this team once he finally returns to action.

Of course, we’ve seen real improvement from Nicolas Jackson of late, so that might have led some to question if Nkunku would get straight back into the team, but it’s important to remember how eager Chelsea were to get this deal done, and wrapped up early last year, so I’m confident he remains a key part of Pochettino’s project.

The post Why Enrique’s Mbappe comments are a positive for PSG, Nkunku’s Chelsea return & what next for Rudi Garcia? appeared first on CaughtOffside.

French football expert Jonathan Johnson has attempted to explain the significance of Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique hitting out at Kylian Mbappe despite scoring a hat-trick for the club in their win over Reims at the weekend.

The Spanish tactician notably stated that he still wanted more from Mbappe, despite the France international putting in a superb display in front of goal, scoring three times in a 3-0 win away from home in Ligue 1.

Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside as part of his column for the Daily Briefing, Johnson played down the importance of Enrique calling out Mbappe in this way, and even suggested it might be a good thing as this PSG squad has long needed some more discipline after a difficult few years of under-achievement.

“A few eyebrows were raised by Luis Enrique criticising Kylian Mbappe after he scored a hat-trick against Reims, with the PSG manager admitting he still wasn’t happy with the player, demanding more from him despite his goal-scoring heroics,” Johnson said.

“There is, however, nothing to read into after Enrique’s recent comments regarding Mbappe. It is no secret that the Spanish tactician would like to see his French superstar working harder for the team and he is not the first PSG boss to want that.”

It will be interesting to see how Mbappe responds to these comments, but it could be that Enrique is bringing just the right kind of personality into his role as manager of this talented team.

Johnson also added some insight into the latest on Mbappe’s future at the Parc des Princes, with the 24-year-old yet to sign a new contract and edging closer to becoming a free agent.

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“It is unlikely that we will see any major development on that front before the end of 2023 with much of Mbappe’s decision likely to hinge upon how PSG fare in the Champions League this term,” Johnson added.

“There have been signs of progress under Luis Enrique and the post-November internationals run up until the winter break could prove to an important period in terms of how Mbappe and PSG’s outlook is come early 2024.

“Overall, though, the players are largely happy with PSG’s new direction and the fact that the Spaniard is able to offer constructive criticism of his star player so publicly shows how things are changing at Parc des Princes compared with the former player power, which dictated that individuals came before the collective and the club.”

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