LW Vinicius Junior
It is worth thinking about left wingers, such as Eden Hazard, in a Kylian Mbappe trade, because the young French forward would like to stick to that position at Real Madrid. And understandably so. That would be his best position in the Real system, playing off of Karim Benzema at striker.
So if that’s the case, a young left winger could be sacrificed for Mbappe, especially if Leonardo draws a hard-line stance that he wants a forward in exchange. Hazard is most likely older and more injury-prone than what PSG are looking for, but Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo Goes have constantly popped up on the rumor mill as possible PSG targets. The former seems to be more coveted by PSG due to his upside.
Vinicius may also be easier to trade than Rodrygo from Real’s perspective, because he is not as good on the right-hand side as Rodrygo. He also does not have Rodrygo’s production despite showing plenty of quality in his own right. Real Madrid would have Mbappe locking down the left wing position with Hazard available and Rodrygo also capable of playing there, so Vini could be the odd man out.
The issue with trading Vini to get Mbappe is that Vini’s long-term value is greater than his short-term value. Real could significantly reduce the Mbappe fee by trading Vini to PSG, but if Vini breaks out in the future as a superstar, which is a real likelihood, then Los Blancos will feel that they missed out. And there will still be a significant cash difference in this deal, meaning Real would be paying up a high fee for Mbappe even with the trade.
However, if Perez desperately wants Mbappe, trading Vinicius may be the only way to get him this summer without praying for a free transfer in 2022, which seems almost impossible. I do not think Vini will be traded since this seems too much like a “fantasy” option, but it would make a lot of sense for PSG to demand him if they know Mbappe wants to leave and Madrid don’t have the right cash liquidity to make it happen without a trade.