Real Madrid News
Real Madrid icon teases Mbappe signing: “The turtles haven’t arrived yet, but they will”
Speaking on his podcast ‘Einfach Mal Luppen’, Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos has teased the potential arrival of Kylian Mbappe this summer.
Mbappe has been completely frozen out at PSG after his refusal to renew his contract or accept a departure this summer.
And, Real Madrid have been touted as the favourites to sign the 24-year-old World Cup winner, despite there having been no tangible movement from the club’s end with regard to signing him.
Kroos, though, teased the potential signing of Mbappe in the near future, stating that the ‘turtles will arrive’, referring to the attacker’s nickname.
It must be noted that Mbappe has been given the nickname ‘Donatello’ of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and has often been referred to as a turtle by his teammates.
“I have a new dog. What about the turtles? I don’t forget about them, but they haven’t arrived yet. They are still in the planning, a new dog doesn’t mean that the turtles won’t arrive. That’s for sure. They will arrive,” Kroos said (h/t SPORT).
Kroos is not the first player to hint at Mbappe’s signing, with players such as Vinicius Jr, Eder Militao, and Rodrygo Goes speaking more openly about wanting to see the French superstar at the club.
“Juni (Calafat), you have to sign Mbappé,” Militao and Vinicius had said in a recent viral TikTok video.
“For me, a 10 because he is a phenomenon, one of the best players in the world. Right now we need a player in that position, the sooner, the better,” Rodrygo had said in June.
Real Madrid though are playing the waiting game as they do not want to pay over the odds for a player who is in the final year of his contract and could very well join for free in 2024.
Reports suggest that Los Blancos do not plan to offer more than €130 million for the French superstar, and will not make a move unless the player declares that he wishes to leave.
Aurelien Tchouameni has had an exciting start to his career at Real Madrid. Since joining the club for almost €80 million last summer, the young Frenchman has now become a pivotal figure in Real Madrid’s midfield unit.
However, prior to his move to Santiago Bernabeu, the midfielder was closely linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain.
In a recent interview, Tchouameni opened up on his links to PSG but revealed his decision to join Real Madrid.
Aurelien Tchouameni on PSG links
Talking about speculations linking him to PSG, Tchouameni said (h/t Madrid Zone), “PSG? Frankly, I thought about it. It’s a very big European club, we want the French clubs to succeed.”
“But honestly, when Real Madrid calls you, it’s very complicated to say no,” Tchouameni added.
The midfielder was linked with a move to PSG during his time at AS Monaco. Les Parisiens wanted to sign the youngster as part of their plans to reinforce the midfield unit.
Tchouameni, though, ended up opting for a move to Real Madrid, which turned out to be a prudent decision from the midfielder’s end.
Tchouameni’s career at Real Madrid
Aurelien Tchouameni made a total of 50 competitive appearances during his maiden season at Real Madrid.
Although the Frenchman was not entirely a first-team regular in Carlo Ancelotti’s setup, his stature in the team is expected to grow in the coming years.
Especially as Toni Kroos and Luka Modric move on at the end of the season, there is scope for Tchouameni to become a first-team regular in the Real Madrid midfield in the years to come.
The former AS Monaco starlet has already played a crucial role in the starting eleven so far this season and it is only going to continue as the season progresses.
