INEOS director of sport Sir Dave Brailsford has played down the prospect of Manchester United entering the battle for Kylian Mbappe’s signature.

It was revealed on Thursday that the France international will be leaving his current club Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the season. Asked whether the Red Devils would make an approach for the World Cup winner, Brailsford replied:

“I think he’s got his heart set on going to Real Madrid.”

Brailsford’s remarks are not a surprise. It has been known for quite some time that Mbappe’s preference would be to move to the Bernabeu.

However, there have been reports in recent days that Real are struggling to agree personal terms with the forward, who has scored 270 goals in his senior career.

Arsenal have thrown their hat into the ring

Asked in his pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon, Gunners boss Mikel Arteta made it clear that his team would be interested in recruiting Mbappe if a transfer to Madrid doesn’t materialise:

“When there is a player of that calibre we always have to be in the conversation. But as you said it looks in a different way.”

Liverpool have also been regularly linked with Mbappe, who has mentioned in the past that his mum is a fan of the Reds. However, a Premier League transfer does not seem to be a priority for the striker at this stage.

United would have to break their wage structure for Mbappe

The 25-year-old is currently getting a staggering £1.2m a week at PSG, which is 3.5 times more than United’s current highest earner Raphael Varane.

If the Glazers were still in charge of the club’s football operations, you wouldn’t have put it past them making a crazy offer but, with INEOS now in control of the reins, it seems unlikely that they will table a proposal.