Shirt number, the unexpected conflict at Real Madrid after the arrival of Mbappé

The last few days have been very intense for Kylian Mbappé. On Wednesday he was key with a goal in the 2-0 win vs Real Sociedad, for the first leg of the Champions League round of 16. The following day, it emerged that he had a meeting with Paris Saint-Germain owner Nasser Al-Khelaifi, in which he informed him of his decision to leave the club at the end of the 2023/24 season. Then, at the weekend he was substituted vs Nantes in Ligue 1 and scored one of the winning goals in the second half.

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And this Monday, Marca reported that there is an agreement signed two weeks ago between the French striker and Real Madrid for him to join the squad from July 1, once his contract with PSG expires. Thus, months of speculation and rumors in newspapers, TV shows and social media about the future of 'Kiki', who had been mentioned as a possible signing by Premier League clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool, come to an end.

However, that doesn't mean things will calm down. Mbappé's arrival to the Spanish side will cause an unexpected conflict in the squad, related to the jersey he will wear at La Casa Blanca. The numbers he has played with during his professional career are mainly two: 7 for Paris Saint-Germain and 10 for the France national team. The problem is that both are currently occupied, the former by Vinicius Junior and the latter by Luka Modric.

The vacant numbers right now are also two. The 16, which does not seem to be very tempting for a star like Kylian, and the 9. This shirt was left vacant since the departure of Karim Benzema to Al-Ittihad and could be an interesting option for him, but rumors indicate that Real Madrid are reserving it for another player, Endrick, who will also join next summer.

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What is the solution?

With this scenario, Real Madrid and Mbappé will have to make a decision: either he chooses one of the vacant numbers, even if he doesn't like them too much, or some changes are made. It seems impossible for Vinicius Junior to leave the number 7, but Luka Modric's situation is very different. The Croatian midfielder has less and less participation in the team and it is rumored that he could leave this summer, which would make things easier for Kylian.