Revealed: Why Real Madrid Edged PSG to Secure €60M-Rated South American Rising Star | OneFootball

PSG looked to be in pole position to land Franco Mastantuono—one of South America’s most exciting young talents—heading into the summer. But in the end, it was Real Madrid who sealed the deal.

According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Mastantuono has chosen to join Madrid, calling the move a dream come true. The Argentine teenager has already agreed to personal terms with the Spanish giants.

Now that the transfer is coming together, more details are surfacing about how it unfolded, especially given how close PSG appeared to be to landing him.

Why PSG lost out on Franco Mastantuono

Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images

With Real Madrid facing PSG in the semifinal of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, Le Parisien journalist Dominique Sévérac recalled that the Parisians weren’t willing to overpay for the Argentine, which the Spanish club did.

“It’s a strategic choice to stop overpaying for players,” Sévérac wrote (h/t Le10Sport). “That’s what people used to criticize PSG for. Paris offered the amount of his release clause, 45 million euros. Real put more than 60 million on the table. And the player, who had apparently made PSG his priority, changed his mind. In Paris, they don’t like that—just like with Rayan Cherki a year ago.”

Journalist Jorge C. Picón recently reported that Luis Enrique personally reached out to Mastantuono, and PSG had managed to win him over. Everything was lined up for him to sign with the French club within hours—until Real Madrid stepped in and turned the situation on its head.

It will be interesting to see whether Mastantuono made the right decision to join Real Madrid over PSG.