Madrid accept Mbappe defeat?

Real Madrid are not expected to sign any forwards this summer after reportedly accepting that Kylian Mbappe will join Paris Saint-Germain.

According to Marca, Madrid’s board and Coach Zinedine Zidane both agreed to “leave the squad as it is and rely on BBC” after “Mbappe’s departure to PSG”.

The French giants, who recently signed Neymar for a world-record, €222m from Barcelona, are said to have agreed an €180m fee with Monaco for the teenager.

It comes after Cristiano Ronaldo had made an ‘irreversible decision’ to leave Los Blancos in light of his legal problems, while Gareth Bale’s place was threatened by the possible arrival of Mbappe.

Madrid would also be expecting Bale “to explode once and for all” in his fifth season at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Karim Benzema, meanwhile, has seen off the threat of Alvaro Morata to keep Los Merengues’ No 9 jersey, while Borja Mayoral has returned from a loan spell to replace Mariano Diaz as a backup option.

However, Marca explains BBC will be treated differently to previous seasons as they are “no longer untouchable like they once were.”

This is because of Isco’s new-found status as “a star” and Casemiro becoming “untouchable”.

Due to “there are more quality midfielders than forwards”, the publication claims it is likely that Zidane will adopt a 4-3-1-2 formation against Barcelona in Sunday’s Supercopa first leg.

Bale and Karim Benzema would partner each other in attack, supported by Isco in the hole, with Ronaldo among the substitutes.

Tags BBC Cristiano Ronaldo Gareth Bale Karim Benzema Kylian Mbappe Monaco Paris Saint-Germain PSG
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