Paris Saint-Germain are supposedly ready to launch an astonishing bid to try and sign Aurélien Tchouaméni from Monaco this summer.
RMC reported on Tuesday that the 22-year-old had agreed to join Real Madrid for a fee in the region of €80million (£68.6m) plus bonuses. This was despite interest from Liverpool but it was understood he has agreed to sign for the Spanish giants on a five-year deal instead.
Tchouameni has made 95 appearances for Monaco since joining from Bordeaux in 2019, scoring eight times. His form for the Ligue 1 outfit has also earned him multiple France caps.
But now, according to Le Parisien, PSG sporting director Luis Campos wants to change Tchouameni's mind and persuade him to join the Paris club instead. Kylian Mbappe, who rejected a move to Los Blancos to stay at PSG, is involved in the negotiations and could put another dent in Real's armour.
Mbappe and Tchouameni have played with each-other for France and could team up once again if he decides to join PSG instead of Real. Mauricio Pochettino's side could do with signing another midfielder this summer with Danilo Pereira, Georginio Wijnaldum and Idrissa Gueye all coming towards the back end of their careers.
He could be the perfect addition to their ranks but PSG will face competition from Real Madrid if they manage to make a late swoop for the midfielder. Monaco sporting director Paul Mitchell has previously spoken about Tchouameni's future amid potential interest from Liverpool, Real and PSG.
Who should Aurélien Tchouaméni join this summer? Let us know in the comments below!
When asked about whether he would prefer to sell him to Liverpool, Mitchell said: "I don't have a preference to be honest! As always when you sell a player, there needs to be fair compensation. The market is different every year.
"Everyone was able to see what a top player Aurelien is, but everyone also knows that we are an ambitious club with an ambitious shareholder. So no, I have no preference when it comes to selling him. We will have to be very aggressive in terms of the fee we demand to lose such an incredibly gifted player."
Quizzed on how difficult Monaco's task will be to replace Tchouameni, Mitchell affirmed: "That's why he's so sought after! The market is usually pretty smart especially in the clubs you mentioned. That's why replacing him will be incredibly difficult but we will try to increase the full capacity of the team. I think it's important to keep building the team and not just focus on the individuals that make it up.
"We have a very competitive style of play and for us it would be a mark of success to build the depth of the team and the quality of the whole group because we are also going to come out of the pre-season with matches that will continue until mid-September. That's why I think replacing Aurelien Tchouameni at that time would be a difficult task, but it would be for anyone."
