Joan Laporta immediately turned down a world record bid for Lamine Yamal last summer. Photo by Eric Alonso/Getty Images
Although he is only 17, Paris Saint-Germain are believed to have made a world record bid of €250 million for Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal this summer, which was immediately rejected by president Joan Laporta.
talking with Barça Oneofficial internal channel of the club, Laporta was frank in his explanation of how and why the Blaugranas remained firm despite what would have been an incredible injection of money into a club that a few years ago exceeded a billion euros of debt (ESPN).
Joan Laporta turned down a world record offer for Lamine Yamal
“They (PSG) came to me to buy Lamine for 250 million euros and I said not six months ago,” he said.
“He’s the most popular player in the world. What’s Lamine’s real worth? Well, that’s not reflected in book value.”
It is believed that the French giants had tried to prize the teenager in order to give their fans something to shout about. after losing Kylian Mbappé to Barça’s rival, Real Madrid.
Instead of charging, In fact, Barcelona wants to extend the youngster’s contract.
It’s clear that, injuries permitting, Lamine will be soccer’s next superstar, although it’s unfair to call him the “new Messi.”
That nickname was thrown around like confetti when Ansu Fati burst onto the scene, and just a handful of seasons later, after a serious injury, the player looks nothing like he used to.
What the rejection of the offer demonstrates, of course, is that, finally, Barça seems to see the light at the end of a very long tunnel.
The depth of the squad and the quality within it is as good as it has been for years, and under Hansi Flick, the squad is developing brilliantly, winning eight of their nine league games so far.
With Real Madrid also on the horizon, the Clásico will be a true test of how far they have come.
