Will Real Madrid sign PSG’s Kadidiatou Diani this summer?

A powerful forward with plenty of elite experience and a keen eye for goal, Kadidiatou Diani is out of contract at Paris Saint-Germain in June - and Real Madrid are among a group of clubs keen to sign her on a free transfer.

Chelsea and Washington Spirit are also chasing the France international. “I have several teams interested in me, be it in England, the United States or Spain,” Diani said a few weeks ago. “So I have that option. Unlike with PSG, talks have started.”

Diani on target against Real Madrid earlier this season

Diani, who joined PSG in 2017 from Juvisy, has been enjoying her best ever season in front of goal. The 28-year-old is the top scorer in the French league, having netted 17 times. She also hit six goals in the Champions League and has supplied a total of seven assists in all competitions.

Madrid were among Diani’s victims in the Champions League this term. She scored the winner from the penalty spot in PSG’s 2-1 group-phase victory over Las Blancas in December, as the Parisians qualified for the knockout stage at the Spaniards’ expense.

Expected to go to World Cup after Hervé Renard appointment

A fixture for France in recent years - she was one of Les Bleues’ stand-out stars at Euro 2022 - Diani was among several major players who turned their backs on the national team earlier in 2023, amid a dressing-room revolt against then-head coach Corinne Dacre.

However, France’s new boss, Hervé Renard, has said she’ll be in his plans once she returns from the broken collarbone she suffered in PSG’s Champions League quarter-final elimination by Wolfsburg. Diani therefore looks likely to be in the French squad for the World Cup in July and August.

By that time, the player’s club future will have been resolved. Her €450,000 annual salary appears to be the chief stumbling block to a move to Madrid…