PSG Transfer News Roundup: Lionel Messi only negotiating with Parisians; Sergio Ramos not offered new contract yet, and more - February 8, 2023

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) travel to the Stade Velodrome tonight (February 8) to lock horns with Marseille in the Coupe de France Round of 16. Christophe Galtier’s team are coming off a 2-1 win over Toulouse at the weekend.

Meanwhile, Lionel Messi is only in talks with the Parisians regarding his future. Elsewhere, the Ligue 1 giants are yet to offer Sergio Ramos a new deal. On that note, here's a look at the key PSG transfer stories as pn February 8, 2023:

---

Lionel Messi only negotiating with PSG

Lionel Messi has shown no signs of slowing down this season.

Lionel Messi is only talking to PSG regarding his future, according to journalist Gaston Edul via PSG Talk.

The Argentinean is in the final few months of his contract with the Ligue 1 champions, prompting interest from the likes of Barcelona and Inter Miami. The 35-year-old has been in blistering form for the Parisians this season, scoring 15 goals and setting up 14 more in 24 games across competitions.

Messi also helped Argentina win the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar in December. The seven-time Ballon d’Or winner has shown that he has a lot of football left in him.

Inter Miami have initiated contact with the player but are yet to submit a formal offer. The Parisians, meanwhile, remain locked in talks with Messi, eager to tie him down to a new one-year deal.

---

Sergio Ramos not offered new contract yet

Sergio Ramos has done well at the back this season.

PSG are yet to offer Sergio Ramos a new contract, according to RMC Sport via PSG Talk.

The former Real Madrid defender’s contract runs out at the end of the season. Ramos has performed admirably so far this season, but his efforts have not yet warranted a contract extension offer.

With Milan Skriniar set to move to the Parc des Princes from Inter Milan this summer, the Ligue 1 champions are biding their time with Ramos. The Parisians will carefully monitor the player’s performances between now and the end of the season before coming to a final decision.

---

Kylian Mbappe reason for Real Madrid’s struggles this season, says Joan Maria Batlle

Kylian Mbappe was close to joining Real Madrid last summer.

Real Madrid’s failure to secure Kylian Mbappe last summer have hurt them badly, according to journalist Joan Maria Batlle. The French forward was very close to joining Los Blancos in 2022 before performing a U-turn in the eleventh hour to sign a new deal with PSG.

In his column for SPORT, as cited by PSG Talk, Batlle said the La Liga giants were convinced that Mbappe would join them last summer.

“Who was going to tell us less than a year ago that this February, Barca would be in happiness mode and Madrid in crisis? Yes, because there were several months in which the emotional thermometer of both clubs and hobbies was completely opposite,” wrote Batlle.

He added:

“In Madrid, it was taken for granted that Mbappe would wear white, otherwise, it would be (Erling) Haaland, and some dreamed and, so they preached, that it would be both. In Barcelona, without a euro in the box, the unbridled wage bill and the levers still in an embryonic state, everything looked black.”

Batlle argued that Real Madrid president Florentino Perez failed to react to Mbappe’s rejection.

“Mbappe said ‘No’ to Madrid, and Florentino was left naked, without the Frenchman and without Haaland, whom he ignored due to his total commitment to the one who would ultimately betray him. The Madrid president did not react; he saved the money for a better occasion, always thinking of Mbappe, not to pay for the Bernabeu, as has been said,” wrote Batlle.

The 24-year-old Mbappe has amassed 25 goals and six assists in 26 games across competitions for the Parisians this season.