Well, the thing that everyone expected to happen happened. PSG have officially signed Monaco phenom Kylian Mbappe on loan for this season with a mandatory purchase clause for $214.26 million next summer, which they will almost certainly do.
#BienvenueKylian pic.twitter.com/hFztW5pTjL
— PSG Officiel (@PSG_inside) August 31, 2017
The "loan to avoid Financial Fair Play" move gets used by big clubs all the time, so don't get mad at PSG for this. They didn't invent it. They just perfected it.
The 18-year-old Mbappe scored 26 goals in 44 appearances for Monaco last season, helping the club to a magical season in which they won Ligue 1 (toppling Mbappe's new club in the process) and made it to the Champions League semifinals. PSG now have the deepest attacking force in the world, with Mbappe joining Neymar, Edinson Cavani, Angel Di Maria, Julian Draxler, Javier Pastore and Lucas Moura. Mbappe might even struggle to get time.
This is PSG's last flex in a summer of flexes, and some of the world's best attacking players will be frustrated with lack of playing time in this set-up. You know what is guaranteed playing time this season, though?
Narrative.