Real Madrid Rarely Gets Rejected. But Sometimes It Happens With Superstars

The transfer saga of Kylian Mbappe has come to an end. At the end of this season, the Frenchman will join Real Madrid, which has been rejected several times before. However, some stars have never accepted the offer from the royal club.

In 2004, Real Madrid pursued 27-year-old AS Roma captain Francesco Totti. The Italian was offered a salary of 8 million euros per year and the opportunity to compete for all trophies. However, Totti believed in the project of the new coach, Luciano Spalletti, and stayed in Rome.

The sale of Claude Makélélé was one of the main mistakes of the Galácticos era, which they decided to correct in 2004 by signing Patrick Vieira. The Frenchman was offered an ironclad place in the starting lineup since he had no competitors in that position. Nevertheless, the Arsenal captain decided to stay in London, and Thomas Gravesen went to Madrid instead.

Before starting the 2009/10 season, Real Madrid decided to take Franck Ribéry from Bayern Munich. But the German club didn't want to let go of their leader and demanded record-breaking money. President Uli Hoeness made a powerful statement: "If they pay 120 million for Kaká, then Ribéry is worth 150." In the end, Real Madrid backed out of the idea of signing him, although at one point in the saga, Ribéry gave an interview that made it seem like everything was over with Munich ("It's all decided. I want to leave. My new club will be Real").

In 2017, Florentino Pérez admitted that four years earlier, Neymar was close to joining Real Madrid. The Brazilian even underwent a medical examination, but at the last moment chose Barcelona. Gareth Bale went to the Spanish capital instead of Neymar.

David de Gea, whose contract with Manchester United expired in 2015, was the closest to a transfer to Real Madrid. The goalkeeper didn't want to renew, and the Whites were ready to pay and give Keylor Navas. The clubs agreed on everything, but there was a strange hassle with the paperwork (that infamous fax), which resulted in the missed transfer deadline.

Published by Patrick Jane
14.05.2024