After plenty of speculation, AS Monaco have reportedly agreed to sell midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni to Real Madrid in an agreement worth over €100 million, the second highest ever paid for a Ligue 1 player.
Rumours surrounding Tchouaméni’s departure have swirled for months. Real Madrid have always maintained a strong interest in the France international midfielder, whilst Ligue 1 rivals PSG entered the fold in the past weeks. Liverpool also had a strong interest, and Fabrizio Romano reported that manager Jurgen Klopp had even established personal contact with the Bordeaux academy product.
Ultimately, however, it is Real Madrid who have prevailed, although they aren’t the only benefactors from the saga. The package of the deal is yet to be fully confirmed, but RMC have reported that Real Madrid will pay €80 million upfront, €20 million in bonuses (€10 million of which will be easily triggered), and then a 19% tax on the deal to the Spanish government.
Monaco will make a tidy profit on a player who cost them just €18 million back in January 2020. The fee is also the second-highest paid for a player from a Ligue 1 club after Kylian Mbappé, also from Monaco, to PSG for €18 million in 2018. This most recent deal shines a positive light on Monaco’s model of developing players and selling them for profit.
Bordeaux, who sold Tchouaméni to Monaco back in 2020, are also set for a windfall. The club are entitled to 10% of the profit made on the player, and will therefore receive approximately €6 million from the sale.
Monaco must now set about what Philippe Clement described to L’Équipe as an “impossible” task: replacing Tchouaméni. Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma and Lille’s Amadou Onana have both been linked to Monaco by Saber Desfarges, whilst Eliot Matazo, who signed a contract extension with Monaco earlier this season, can also expect to feature more prominently in 2022/23.
The deal has not officially been announced by any club, although it is only a matter of time before the agreement between the clubs is made public. For Monaco, the transfer represents very good business. Tchouméni’s departure has been an inevitability for some time, but his progression this year has garnered a higher fee, whilst the timing of the deal affords Monaco time in their hunt for a replacement.
Photo of Aurélien Tchouaméni by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life