‘He’s a genius – Marquinhos wants Kylian Mbappe to stay at PSG as Real Madrid transfer talk rages

• World Cup winner won't extend deal
• Switch to Spain speculated on
• Team-mates hoping he will stay

WHAT HAPPENED? The World Cup-winning forward finds himself at the centre of intense transfer speculation once again after revealing that he will not be taking up a 12-month contract extension at Parc des Princes through to 2025. PSG are being backed into corner, with it suggested that they will look to sell this summer amid talk of La Liga giants Real Madrid rekindling their long-standing interest in Mbappe.

WHAT THEY SAID: Marquinhos would like to see Mbappe stay put, with the Brazilian defender telling RMC Sport when asked about an unfortunate saga in the French capital: “If he wants to stay, we want him to stay too. He's a genius, a pure talent, a leader for PSG and he's very important to us. Every summer we talk a lot about him, but he's a PSG player and he wants to stay. We'll see what happens. We players want him to stay. It is very important that he stays because we have ambitions. I see him happy. His stats, his goals, his performances on the pitch prove it. He's a player who does a lot of things at PSG and who's important to who the team is.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Mbappe has stated a desire to remain in Paris for another year, but his hand may be forced if Real put a formal offer on the table – with the Blancos having previously seen a €220 million (£188m/$241m) bid for the France international knocked back.

WHAT NEXT? Mbappe has been at PSG since 2017, taking in 260 appearances for the club while becoming their all-time leading goalscorer with 212 efforts to his name.