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Barcelona president Joan Laporta “doesn’t envy” Real Madrid over Kylian Mbappé signing: “He’ll upset the dressing room”
Laporta insists Barça’s Clásico rivals will have to sell a player to fit Mbappé in the team, hinting at problems with Vinicius Junior.
In an interview with Catalan newspaper Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona president Joan Laporta has insisted his club aren’t jealous of Real Madrid’s potential signing of France and Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappé, who Barça will face in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League.
Laporta hints at Mbappé conflict with Vinicius Junior
Laporta believes the 24-year-old’s arrival at Los Blancos could unsettle the dressing room and can’t understand how they would sign Mbappé without selling another player to allow him to fit into the team.
The Barça president doesn’t name names but hints at friction between the Frenchman and Vinicius Junior, who play in similar positions. In any case, Laporta, without knowing for certain, doesn’t think a deal has been done yet.
Mbappé signing “a problem” for Real Madrid
“Am I jealous? Not at all. Absolutely not. Anyway, I don’t know if they’ll do the deal or not. We’ll see. I really don’t know,” Laporta claimed.
“They’ve got a problem there. They’ll have to sell a player if Mbappé signs, right? Because they are not both going to play in the same position and they are also two very important players. And as for the (salary figures), that’s going to upset the dressing room for sure. That’s a gift nobody wants.”
How much does Mbappé earn at PSG?
On Thursday, French newspaper L’Équipe revealed Mbappé's current salary at PSG is €6 million (approximately $6.54 million) a month before tax, the most of any player in European soccer.
His gross salary works out at €72 million (over $78.5 million) a year.
According to Capology, Toni Kroos is Real Madrid’s top earner at present on €2.03 million ($2.21 million) per month, which is $24.38 million (around $26.55 million) a year. It has been widely reported that Mbappé will take a significant wage cut to join Los Blancos but will receive a huge signing-on fee to somewhat off-set it.