Replacing Kylian Mbappé - PSG set to sign Ousmane Dembélé and Gonçalo Ramos

Paris Saint-Germain have likely been tasked with one of the most unenviable jobs possible for a football club to undertake this summer: replacing Kylian Mbappé. According to multiple reports in France, the star striker has turned down his final opportunity to extend his contract and is now considering a potential move to a number of Europe’s biggest clubs. And the Ligue 1 giants are seemingly more than happy to cash in on the player before the transfer window comes to a close. 

However, while clubs may be lining up to make an offer for Mbappé, the job or replacing one of the world’s most impressive players is no easy task. And while PSG have deeper pockets than most, their attempts to find attacking players that could not only compensate for Mbappés unexpected departure but perhaps replace him in the long-term have proven to be very difficult indeed. 

PSG have already spent €128m on new players this summer, which may suggest that the club are well on their way to building a post-Mbappé future under their new head coach. But so far the Ligue 1 giants have focused on other areas of the pitch aside from attack. For example, while Hugo Ekitiké completed a permanent move to the club and attacking midfielder Kang-in Lee was signed from Mallorca, the vast majority of the club’s summer budget has gone on signing defensive midfielder Manuel Ugarte from Sporting for €60m, central defender Lucas Hernández from Bayern Munich for €45m and the free transfer of Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar. 

However, it does now seem like PSG are turning their attention towards their attacking issues. Alongside Ekitiké, Lee and the free transfer of Marco Asensio, the French giants are expected to complete the signing of Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembélé for around €50m as well as Benfica striker Gonçalo Ramos in a deal worth a reported €80m. And both of those players should go some way to compensate for the inevitable departure of Mbappé. 

Can PSG replace Kylian Mbappé with their new signings?

Of course, trying to replace arguably the best player in the world at this moment in time is a monumental task for PSG and no single player could do exactly that. And a look at PSG’s transfer activity suggests that they’re well aware of that fact. Rather than try and sign the next Mbappé or a player of similar stature, the Ligue 1 giants have instead looked to spread the striker’s contributions over a number of new and existing players.

For example, the arrival of Ramos should go a long way to compensating for Mbappé’s goals. The Portugal international bagged 27 goals and 12 assists in 47 games for Benfica last season. Which would be an impressive return for any player. However, it does fall short of Mbappé’s record for PSG, which stood at 41 goals and 10 assists in fewer matches. Indeed, when we break it down to goal contributions per 90 minutes, it suggests that Ramos’ impressive 1.01 average is still slightly off Mbappé’s 1.29. 

This is perhaps where Dembélé comes in. Over the course of the 22/23 season, the Barcelona winger averaged 0.71 goals and assists per 90 minutes across all competitions. And while that may not be as impressive as Ramos or Mbappé’s, it could prove to be extremely useful when we add it to the aforementioned Portuguese forward’s average. In other words, between them, both Ramos and Dembélé could provide and attacking intent that rivals what Mbappé did on his own last season.