He’s the kid that everyone is talking about, the 18-year-old striker with the world at his feet and money being thrown at him by top clubs across the continent.
So do Arsenal, the Europa League version, stand a chance of signing Kylian Mbappe?
According to a family member interviewed by Le Parisien, if the Gunners pull off the summer’s biggest transfer coup it’ll be down to Arsene Wenger.
“Kylian is thinking he either goes to an intermediate club or he goes directly to a large club,” said the family member.
“The goal though is clear, to sign for one of the two biggest clubs in the world, Real or Barcelona, before he is 22-years-old.
“Wenger is a great man. If Kylian signs tomorrow for Arsenal, it will be down to him.
“He has the experience of shaping young talent, especially former France strikers like Thierry Henry and Nicolas Anelka. The Europa League is not an obstacle in itself.”
Having failed in an attempt to sign the player last summer, Arsenal are believed to have had a recent €100 million offer rejected by Monaco, who’ve also dismissed a higher bid from Real Madrid. The likes of Paris Saint Germain, Chelse and Manchester City are also thought to be waiting in the wings.
Obviously, we’ve no idea of the identity of this family member or whether they wield any influence. Worryingly for Arsenal, Le Parisien also claim super agent Jorge Mendes could work in an unofficial capacity with both the player and Monaco over a future move. Hmm.
Lol. Inadvertently told us we’re not a great club whilst they are at it
That is exactly what he wanted to tell. And we are an intermediate clib
That’s pride fucking with you. Fuck pride. Pride only hurts, it never helps.
Let’s go get him
Thanks for the pep talk, Marcellus
Honour and Pride.
What good is a man without his honour and his pride?
Well I think it refers that any club other then Barca or Madrid, are an “intermediate” club.
Talk about delusions of grandeur, some people think we as big as Real or Barca
We are assuming that some cunt didn’t just make this up of course … which is fairly likely.
It doesn’t sound impossible that we will sign him to be fair. Hope so.
How many CLs have we won?
We’re moving closer to the elite level but anyone that thinks we’re at that level need to think again…
In what way are we “moving closer to elite level”? I see us drifting in the opposite direction unfortunately. Let’s hope a few new signings and new contracts this summer turn that drift around.
‘super agent’ Mendes?
Super cunt more like.
HyperCunt
I personally think agents should be banned. Taking money out the game, and for what? I think clubs should just offer to pay for the players lawyer of choice when regarding contracts n stuff. Player should pay for his own career advice from whoever he deems fit. No need for middle man. C’mon Mbappe, it will be fun for a few seasons. COYG!!
So when we sign him? we have 3-4 years to win the champions league, and convince him he can achieve his goals with us.
Easy peesy lemon squeezy
The thing I’m worried about is, can he reach Messi/Ronaldo status within 3-4 years or will it be afterwards? If it’s the latter, we would only have sowed the seeds for Madrid, without reaping the real benefit.
Ronaldo left Manure after winning the Champions League, World Club Cup and multiple Premiership trophies. All that still wasn’t enough to stop him from agitating for a move to Real. If Mbappe wants to play for Real or Barca he’ll play for them regardless of what he wins with us. Professionals view playing for either of those sides as an achievement in-and-of itself, so much so that it’s probably a bucket list item for any top level player. Granted success and a sense of genuine family can prove a compelling mix and foster some loyalty (e.g. Pires) but I think… Read more »
Also if we sell him at 22 or 23, he’ll probably be worth £180m by then
Come on WengerOUT brigade, let’s get the pitchforks out!
Somebody wake me up after transfer deadline window! These media guys are going to give me a heart attack….
so we are “intermediate” club now… *sigh
It’s pretty obvious by now!
Personally, I dont give a damn about what people see when they look at Arsenal as long as Wenger signs him up
Agreed. If the best players sign for us as means to an end so be it. All I care about is that we win things, big things, whilst they rock are colours and once their time is done we’ll move onto the next big name and win more stuff with them… and so on and so forth. Until one day, The Arsenal is seen as THE big club (and even then I wouldn’t care what the world thought about my team cos most opinions are fickle but my support is constant).
He’ll be loved at Arsenal until he’s 22!
Come on Mbappe.
He’ll probably be worth a lot more by then as well.
No, I can see it now. We get him for 120 million, he signs a 4 year deal and goes to Madrid for free when he’s 22.
High fives all round.
If he wins us the league I wouldn’t give two hoots
Be still, my beating heart.
Train him up for a ‘bigger’ club?
No thanks.
Just 4 years and then he leaves…rather have someone commited to the long haul.
How long do you expect to have a Lacazette type for then? He’s 26, probably got another 4-6 years as a top level player, at best.
Jorge Mendes? Mourinho’s agent? Ronaldo’s agent? Forget it, you are practically inviting him onto the board of your club once you sign one of his players. No revenue decision could be made by the club without his involvement. I don’t care how great Mbappe is, we need to steer clear of any Mendes or Raiola clients.
but Mendes and Raiola control most of the big name players. Except you mean Arsenal stays away from big name players
Mbappe over a proven talent like Aubameyang? I know neither are close but I just don’t get 100m for an 18 year old. If it’s no lose financially cause we can sell him on for the same then why not also sign a senior striker. (I know).
If wenger is indeed buying mbappe for 100 million we are essentially puting all the eggs on the same basket here. I hope whatever plan he has it goes according to it in the future. Else it will be huge financial loss for Tue club , not to mention it will definitely cost his job if the kid didn’t come good after spending that kind of money on him
Imagine we sign him and some cunt in the PL breaks his legs in the first match.
Franny Jeffers anybody….. Surely not. Hopefully not.
Do we really want to sign someone who has no interest in staying long term?
Yes!
That was just his ‘relative’ talking! Did his dog have anything to say on the transfer?
That he’d love to smell Humber’s arse.
Then we best have him tied down to a long contract, it’s a very expensive loss if he sees a 4 year contract out
So we are an “intermediary” club for the big teams… Great…
Yay – intermediate!
No point even trying to sign him. He’s going to used us as a stepping stone. Still if it wins us a couple of trophies it would be worth it. What do you think fellow brothers gooner
Get him in, win sum shit and then flog him for profit, id rathe that than win nothing, lets not forget tho theres no actual gaurantee he will be able to perform in the prem no matter how good he is
He wouldn’t be the first and he won’t be the last.
Personally if one of the best young players in the world wants to come and stuffy under Wenger for 4 years and can help us keep Sánchez, Ozil and win the league (no pressure) I’m all for it.
*study! Damn autocorrect
Seriously… this one 18 year old makes the difference between 5th and 1st in his first year in the PL? No way. That’s an irrational fan talking.
To be fair, I don’t know what else we really need to win the league. Our team is pretty good. Yea, we played shite for 2 months in the middle there, but most of our players are OK. Back line, with the new formation, is sorted. Keeper is fine. Xhaka is good, could probably do with another mid (which we are seemingly looking for). And if we keep Ozil, Sanchez and the rest of them and add this fella and we are a long way to competing.
intermediate club – well there you have it black and white. That’s what mediocrity gives you. We Are THE intermediate club.
Arsenal will never – in the foreseeable future – be as big and glamorous as Real Madrid and Barcelona. We have to be realistic and accept that.
Dude all clubs that are not known as Real Madrid or Barcelona are an intermediate Club aren’t they?. I don’t get why everyone’s getting funny about this. Ronaldo used Man U to get to Madrid. Maybe if we cut it out with the vile booing and abusing our own players trying to take a throw in or corner he might stay for longer. A lot can happen in football over 4 seasons.
Oh who cares?
To be fair, the “large club” they’re speaking about is Real and Barca (which I understandably would agree), which would basically make every other club an “intermediate”.
As much as I would like us to sign Mbappe, I can’t help but wonder what happens if he finds life hard in the premier league. I know, he has enormous potential, but what if the same thing that has happened to Jack happens to him? That said, if he comes here and moves on performance wise from where he is now, we have potentially the best player in the world on our hands!!
There are plenty of players from around the world that don’t make it in the PL.
Add to that 25% (1 in 4) transfers only has an ‘OK to Poor’ 1st season at a new club, which can cause issues for a young expensive player as well.
So pretty much every transfer is a gamble.
I must admit to a similar concern. The PL is a harsh place, and some clubs are not below deliberately softening up a young player. How would an 18-year-old Mbappé fare, I wonder? Remember José Antionio Reyes…
I personally have no doubt that he will make it in the premier league. I’m more concerned about the Shawcross’s and Dann’s in our league that seem to have a knack for destroying the careers of our talented players
Why are people getting upset about the intermediary club remark when it is made in comparison to Real Madrid and Barcelona? Compared to those two it’s kinda true. Besides 4 years is a long time who knows what kind of Arsenal we are by then and how many Champions league trophies in the kitty 🙂
If we can get him in on a 4-year contract and if he does eventually leave for Real Madrid after we win 4 Premier Leagues and 2 Champions Leagues in that time, I really wouldn’t mind at all.
But we had the same hope when Ozil and Sanchez signed and we still haven’t won a League or a Champions League so whether he signs or not, I’m not getting my hopes up!
We’d need him on a longer contract so he doesn’t run it out and move on a free.
I love the optimism. Buy mbappe and we will win the CL and PL. Sorry to flog a dead horse, but not with Wenger in charge. Y’all got short memories.
Or maybe we’ve all got long memories…
I kind of implied that…. Read my comment.
Everyone’s inferiority complex coming out here. We are not Real Madrid or Barcelona. Don’t shoot the messenger. Maybe we can rise to those heights with continuous quality especially if some of Mbappé, Lemar and Lacazette type players keep arriving and we tie down Mesut and Alexis.
I couldn’t care less if the young lad was only interested in playing for us for four seasons. Chances are he would become a centurion in that time and we would get another world record fee if selling him.
Intermediate club.
Ivan would be so proud.
The shit Vin diesel looking prick.
I hope you no more than 12 years old because any older and this comment is just embarassing.
Funny how when players or pundit talks about Arsenal, they always refer to them playing beautiful football with a tradition of great players like Henry, Bergkamp, etc. Then, they talk about their “stellar” player development with examples such ase…Henry, Bergkamp, Vieira, etc. You never hear a single word about Wenger’s work over the past 13-14 years in terms of playing style or player development. Arsenal still benefits from their golden era, which was a long time ago. Also, it should ring alarm bells that a young exciting player like Mbappe refers to Arsenal as being “an intermediate club”. Anyone here… Read more »
By “intermediate” he meant in the way towards Madrid or Barcelona, and like it or not that’s where we are and have always been.
We’ve never been part of the elite!
Fuckin Mendes. Opportunistic little twat.
Family member? Must be THE Uncle Arsene…
Even better tell him he can go in 4 years, then just never let him leave. ? Mbappe could be worth double in 4 good season’s, could win us the league I see nothing to lose.
if we win the league with him this season he can go even after one year for 200mil.
Are you suggesting we don’t let him leave so he runs down his contract and moves for free?
yes…if he refuses to sign contract extension after 3rd year, sit him on the bench and ruin his career, if he’s gonna try to cheat the club out of profit…should do same with Alexis, as much as I love him…wouldnt hurt for him to sign a new contract and leave afterwards like Suarez did…if u threaten to sit him on the bench for one year in the world cup season he will sign…
The Arsenal way isn’t it.
Anyone offended by the intermediary part of this needs to wake up to the reality of modern football. Football is increasingly made up of journeymen players, and they are all loyal until their contract hits the final 24 months.
I’d prefer players to be honest rather than spouting bullshit that it’s always been their dream to play for a club before taking the next payday somewhere else a few years later.
It’s time to stop being sentimental and start being ruthless by taking advantage of players like Mbappe and their situations if we can.
To paraphrase Ian Wright, ‘I think the gaffer’s gonna sign Mbappe cause if you don’t have hope then what the fuck do you have?’
Ah yes. His cousins uncles father in law, via a messy divorce, sons illegitimate daughter who remarried…. anyway, hope it’s true. I do think we have a hope and it ain’t standfford Le or Bob.
Lets say Arsenal sign him for 140m, have him scoring 20 to 30 goals per season helping us to win titles, then flog him for the same or more in four years – what is there to moan about?
Use us as a stepping stone, Mbappe. Use us. USE US!
Joking aside, it would be a very intelligent move for him. Under Arsene, a top manager who loves to work with and improve players, KM is almost guaranteed to get better at Arsenal. He would start every game and while a lot would be expected of him, he wouldn’t have the same pressure as at a super-club. And yes, we are a huge club with an international fanbase, but nowhere near as big as Real Madrid or Barca. If you’re offended by that, you need to get over yourself.
This young players thing under Wenger is a bit of a myth. Ramsey, Wilshire, Theo, Jenks etc etc haven’t improved at all
Also, I read that he and his family want nothing to do with Raiola or Mendes, who have been trying to get their claws into him for years. His father does contracts – which is the way it should be for a young player – someone who cares about him and not just the money is in charge of his career.
Gosh darn you, Independent newspaper and your “source close to the player” – I had made my peace with the expectation that we would have to look elsewhere, but now I am hoping again!
“Arsenal are believed to have had a recent €100 million offer rejected by Monaco”
hahahahahah!
Arsenal will never bid €100 million for a single player. If they did they probably knew it was gonna be rejected for sure. They’d have shit their pants if the bid was accepted.
No problem with the “intermediate” bit, but spending this money shows a statement of intent to fans and prospective players. Why do you think Utd payed a mediocre Rooney mad money to keep him etc. “Still a big club spending money.”
Wengers probably unlikely to sign again after two years meaning the likes of Henry et al are more likely to come back into the fold for coaching etc. Hopefully those influences would convince KM to sign another contract, Arsenal having that habit of its players becoming lifelong fans. Anyway, he hasn’t signed anything yet.
How about we do a deal with Barca or Real. We buy the guy for x years. We then do a back to back deal for the same amount with Barca of Real guaranteeing he can go to them after 4 or 5 years. We get the player for the cost of his wages. They get all the risk that he fails in return for the upside that he becomes a star. We use the fee money received to buy other players.
“.. two biggest clubs in the world, Real or Barcelona..”
Wait, what?!?
This family member obviously doesn’t know too much
Who cares, we need this kid. What’s important is that Monaco just signed his replacement so they’ve decided to sell him. Now is our only chance to make him an Arsenal player and we’ve got to take advantage of it. Sign him and it’ll be much easier to keep Sanchez as well. Come on Arsene, make it happen!
Ideally he signs, smashes all kinds of goal scoring records, wins a few titles with us and we sell him to Madrid for a cool £200 million.
100,000,000 on the poo rating scale.