- Kylian Mbappe didn’t plan to join Real Madrid in 2017 because the Cristiano-Benzema-Bale trio was still there.
- Instead, he could’ve signed for Barca for €100m.
- However, other board members decided in favour of Dembele; they explained that Ousmane was more of a team player.
“When we were to sign Dembele, Minguella [agent] called me to tell us that Mbappe was available. I talked to Bartomeu and he told me to monitor the situation,” Barca’s former director Javier Bordas has said.
“I called his [Mbappe’s] father and he told me that he was not going to [Real] Madrid because Cristiano, Benzema and Bale were there and instead he could go to Barca because Neymar was not there.
“Monaco president preferred Mbappe to go to Barca so as not to strengthen rival PSG. The deal could’ve been done for €100m. But Robert [Fernandez, Barca’s former technical secretary] preferred Dembele and Pep Segura [ex-general manager] supported him.
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“The explanation was that Mbappe plays for himself and Dembele is more of a team player. And since Neymar left, Robert preferred a winger more than a finisher,” Bordas concluded.
It could’ve been a fantastic story if we had signed Mbappe. Even 3 years later, Barca still haven’t found a proper replacement for Neymar while the Frenchman turned into the world’s most expensive player.
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