Kylian Mbappé was one of the stars in the opening week for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16. The 22-year-old went into the Camp Nou without Neymar Jr. and Ángel Di María and scored a hat trick as Paris Saint-Germain walked away with a 4-1 first-leg victory over FC Barcelona.
However, the Spanish side could’ve had the France international putting together this master class night for them. In 2017, Barça was looking to replace Neymar Jr., who had left for the French giants, and Mbappé was an option to replace his would-be teammate.
In the end, they decided to reject him and agreed to go to Ousmane Dembélé, according to Junior Minguella during an interview with “El Partidazo de COPE” and Radio Marca.
“Yes, that’s the way it was; I can confirm it. Now more than ever because some manager already confirmed it and gave his version of the story, it is true,” Minguella said.
The football agent went on to say that Barça preferred Dembélé due to him being a better fit teamwise. Furthermore, some within the club called Mbappé a ghost.
“At the moment in which Neymar’s move to PSG was confirmed, the technicians and the president, who does not want to skip them, have doubts about the player they want to incorporate,” Minguella said. “[Barça] believe that they are better for the type of team play suited for Dembélé rather than Mbappé. Some went so far as to say that Mbappé was a ghost, that against whom this boy had drawn.”
Minguella also discusses a deal that was in place for Mbappé to head to Barça, but that deal never materialized.
“We had the agreement closed at €130 million-plus 25 in incentives. Mbappé would earn between €10 and €16-million,” Minguella said.
The future for PSG might be different if Barça wasn’t so arrogant to dismiss the talent of Mbappé.
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