Madrid have options after Mbappe refused

It was common knowledge that Madrid wanted to attract Mbape and form their team around the French striker for the next decade.

The Spanish champions are used to getting what he wants, but this time he failed to reach his number one goal, and PSG’s financial muscles are undoubtedly a major factor.

Now Madrid president Florentino Perez has to consider the club’s next course of action. Does it depend on Karim Benzema and Vinicius Jr. next season, or is there a contingency plan in case Mbape comes to that decision?

Here’s a look at other players Madrid might consider if he still intends to bring a new striker to the club next season.

Richardson (Everton / Brazil)

After five years spent in the middle of the table and at the bottom of the Premier League with Watford and more recently with Everton, Richardson seems long overdue to move to a club where he can compete for top awards. The 25-year-old was previously linked with Madrid and Barcelona, ​​and more recently with Manchester United, and he will pose a threat to any party he joins. Able to play broadly either in the center or fuss between roles, Richardson has scored double-digit goals in the Premier League in three of his four seasons with Everton, and in the year of the World Cup this could be the perfect time to transition for the striker. If it blinds Qatar 2022, that price tag could skyrocket.

Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain / Brazil)

PSG were desperate to keep Mbape, but will it be the same for Neymar? Five years into his career at PSG Neymar is now 30 years old and this is his first season when he has played more than 20 league games for the Parisian team. Injuries ruined his stay in France, and although he remains a gifted player and sometimes a pleasure to watch, if PSG wants to recoup a piece of the huge costs that brought him to Paris from Barcelona, ​​now may be the time for that. For Madrid, this would be a brazen approach, and Neymar’s story in Barcelona adds even more complication given the rivalry, but the player himself may succumb to temptation.

Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich / Poland)

If Madrid are meant to sign a statement to ease the pain of Mbape’s absence, then joining the race for Lewandowski and skating with Barcelona would be one way to do so. Lewandowski told Bayern that he wants to leave, and ideally until next season. Barcelona is certainly interested, but its financial problems are well known. Could Madrid be the best to get the top scorer from Europe’s top five leagues this season? Lewandowski scored 50 goals in 46 games in all competitions for Bayern, with Madrid Benzema in second place and Mbappe in third. Whether Madrid will want the player, who will turn 34 in August, when he already has a 34-year-old frontman in Benzema, is debatable.

Paulo Dybala (Juventus / Argentina)

Mbape would have come to Madrid for a free transfer, given that his contract with PSG was coming to an end. If the priority is to get a forward without an initial transfer fee, then Dybala becomes an option. Roma and many Premier League clubs have been linked with the Argentine international, whose contract with Juventus is coming to an end. He has scored at least 15 goals in five of seven seasons at Juventus, and will bring to Madrid creative participation and a host of trophies.

Christopher Nkunku (Belarus Leipzig / France)

If Madrid can’t have Mbape at the moment, then his partner and Benzema’s partner in the French national team Nkunku looks like a strong alternative. With 34 goals in 51 games for Leipzig this season (before the DFB-Pokal final), Nkunku has established himself in Germany and in European competitions, and the obvious next step is to move to the superclub. The 24-year-old PSG Academy graduate has identified such as Lewandowski and Erling Haaland as the Bundesliga player of the year, highlighting his status as a growing force in the game.

Mohamed Salah (Liverpool / Egypt)

Does Madrid want Salah, or will he prefer his teammate Sadio Mane? Either way, Madrid’s approach could be Liverpool’s worst nightmare. Both Salah and Manet have contracts valid until the end of next season, and they are again tearing it up at this time on four-time reds. They are a hot property and approach what they are considering, probably the last contracts of their careers. Will they fit in Madrid? Both have a flair and a class of finish that suggest they will be the perfect acquisition, and Madrid will get a close-up in the UEFA Champions League final.