PSG Keep Low Profile While Preparing For Life Without Kylian Mbappe

Paris Saint-Germain are beginning a new era following the departure of Kylian Mbappe and the reigning French champions have so far kept a low profile as they prepare for life without the superstar forward. Mbappe moved to Real Madrid when his contract expired in June, ending a prolific seven-year association with the Qatar-owned club in which he struck a remarkable 256 goals to become their all-time top scorer. The France captain therefore leaves an enormous void, so big that PSG appear to have decided there is no one player who could possibly fill it adequately.

Coach Luis Enrique takes his team to Normandy to face Le Havre on Friday on the opening night of the new Ligue 1 campaign without any glitzy new signing having arrived to directly replace Mbappe.

PSG have nevertheless spent money in Europe's summer transfer window, and they may still move for a top-class striker before the deadline at the end of the month.

Napoli's Victor Osimhen, who previously starred in Ligue 1 for Lille, has been linked with a move to the French capital, although it is unclear whether he would fit in with Luis Enrique's preferred style of football.

For now, though, PSG's efforts in the transfer market have been focused elsewhere, with an estimated 125 million euros ($132.2m) invested on three players.

Nineteen-year-old Portuguese midfield prodigy Joao Neves, who appeared for his country at Euro 2024, has arrived from Benfica for 59.9 million euros, a fee which could rise by 10 million euros when bonuses are factored in.

The defence has been strengthened with the recruitment of Ecuador centre-back Willian Pacho, 22, from Eintracht Frankfurt for up to 45 million euros.

PSG's first summer signing was the Russian goalkeeper Matvey Safonov, 25,