Arsenal have all too frequently narrowly missed out on signing some of the best footballers on the planet.
The Gunners famously failed in moves for Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, even after agreeing terms with some of these players.
In more recent times, the North London outfit have been slightly more successful in some of their ambitious scoops, acquiring the likes of Declan Rice and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, despite facing significant competition from elsewhere.
However, in 2017, Arsenal almost signed a player who may have changed the trajectory of the club in the final year of Arsene Wenger’s tenure.
Arsenal almost signed Kylian Mbappe in 2017
Kylian Mbappe burst onto the scene in the 2016/17 season.
The young French forward netted 26 goals across all competitions for Monaco at the age of 18, leading the Ligue 1 side to the Champions League semi-final and the French league title.
In the summer of 2017, several clubs across Europe were unsurprisingly trying to sign Mbappe, who was described as the ‘best player in the world’ by Luis Enrique not long ago (via Goal).
Although Paris Saint-Germain ultimately won the race for the starlet, Arsenal were among the potential suitors looking to lure him to their club.
In fact, Wenger and transfer negotiator Richard Law travelled to Monaco to hold a meeting with Mbappe and his entourage, according to Law himself.
“Arsene and I flew down in the summer of 2016, maybe 2017,” he said on Charles Watts’ YouTube channel.
“Arsene and I flew to Monaco to speak to Mbappe and his family. Would we have liked to have signed Mbappe? Yes, just a bit. Yes, you look back and some deals fell apart because of the structure that the agents were insisting on.
“We didn’t think they would pass muster with the Premier League or the FA, and in one case we were wrong, a commission that was in excess of 20% of the player’s salary was approved, and that surprised us.”
What would have happened if Kylian Mbappe had signed for Arsenal in 2017?
Mbappe claims Thierry Henry was an inspiration to him, and the Real Madrid number nine could easily have followed in the Arsenal legend’s footsteps in North London.
However, it’s unlikely Mbappe would have remained in N5 for several years.
If the Gunners had landed the France international in 2017, they likely wouldn’t have signed either Alexandre Lacazette nor Aubameyang, both of whom had arrived by January 2018.
Arsenal finished sixth and 12 points off the top four in the 2017/18 season, and Mbappe likely would’ve been good enough to single-handedly drag them into these Champions League places.
He’d have struck an exceptional partnership with Mesut Ozil, who was still at the peak of his powers that season, which would’ve been enough to give Wenger’s side another 13 points.
With Champions League qualification secured, Wenger may then have been granted the final year of his contract, instead of leaving in the summer of 2018.
However, another stale year under the veteran manager likely could’ve led to the Gunners finishing outside the top four, even with Mbappe.
Wenger would then likely have left, while the striker would also likely have departed for a European giant, without Champions League football at the Emirates.
Unai Emery, or perhaps Mikel Arteta, may then have been appointed in the summer of 2019.
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