Kylian Mbappe is currently the most sought-after young footballer on the planet.

The French forward is only 20 years old but has already achieved so much in the sport.

He’s won three league titles (two with his current club, Paris Saint-Germain, and one with AS Monaco), the Coupe de la Ligue and the Coupe de France, the prestigious Golden Boy award and, of course, the FIFA World Cup.

Mbappe was one of the stars of the tournament in Russia last summer and deservedly picked up the Best Young Player award after helping Les Bleus lift the World Cup trophy for only the second time.

The youngster has improved even more over the past 12 months. Last season he scored 21 goals in 44 games for PSG. This season he ended the campaign with 39 goals in 43 appearances.

Only Barcelona’s Lionel Messi scored more league goals in European football this season.

Mbappe recently dropped a hint over his future at the Parc des Princes, suggesting he may be keen to embark on a new challenge, although PSG insist he will still be their player next season.

However, rumours linking Mbappe with a big-money move to Real Madrid, where Zinedine Zidane is ready to overhaul his squad following a disappointing season, refuse to go away.

They are currently favourites with SkyBet to sign the lightning-quick forward followed by Liverpool and then, wait for it, Newcastle United.

Yep, as things stand the Magpies are currently 20/1 to sign Mbappe - the same odds as Manchester United.

So, what on earth is going on here? Are we going to see Mbappe in the number nine shirt at St James’ Park next season instead of Salomon Rondon?

The answer, of course, is almost certainly no.

Mbappe moving to Newcastle this summer would probably rank as the most surprising transfer of all time.

The likely explanation for Newcastle’s relatively short odds is all to do with the recent reports claiming Sheikh Khaled bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the cousin of Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour, is poised to complete a £350 million takeover of the north-east outfit.

The Bin Zayed Group said it has agreed terms and hopes to complete the deal "at the earliest opportunity".

If the deal is completed, and Mike Ashley finally leaves the club, then Newcastle manager Rafael Benitez will potentially have a huge budget to improve his squad this summer.

But will that budget be big enough to convince Mbappe to play for the Toon?

We’d love to say stranger things have happened but, in this case, they probably haven’t.

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