Six matches, and already a suitcase
Six. That is the number of first-team appearances Pape Cabral has made for Monaco. At 19, the Franco-Senegalese midfielder has only just started to make his mark at the club. And he could already be gone in a matter of days.
According to L’Equipe, Saudi club Al-Ahli have opened talks with ASM. The deal is said to be at an advanced stage. An agreement could be reached quickly, at around 10 million euros.
Ten million for a player who has not even put together a full season yet.
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Develop, inflate, sell: Monaco run the same play every summer
Monaco know the routine inside out. A year ago, the club sent Saimon Bouabre to NEOM. Same fee, 10 million. The summer before that, George Ilenikhena moved to Al-Ittihad for 33 million euros.
Three youngsters, either developed or brought into the spotlight on the Rock. Three cheques from the Gulf. The model is no accident: Monaco develop, raise value, sell. And the Saudi Pro League pays up without worrying about age or minutes played.
Cabral, for his part, was being talked up internally as one of the club’s rising talents. That has never been much protection at Monaco.
France’s window is shut, Saudi Arabia’s is not
The French transfer window closed on September 1. The Saudi one did not. The result is that Ligue 1 clubs can still sell, but they can no longer replace.
Filipe Luis has only just taken charge of the team and faces PSG on Friday. Losing a young midfielder from the squad now will not exactly help him. Monaco have already had a lively end to the window, with the failed move for Lamine Camara to Chelsea and the Erik Lira deal that never got over the line.
Nothing has been signed yet. But when a Gulf club puts 10 million on the table for a 19-year-old, these stories rarely end with a no.
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