The imminent signing of the Frenchman is experienced in Barcelona with a mixture of resignation, anger and even a point of hope. “The best thing that can happen to Barca is for Mbappé to sign for Madrid, time will prove me right,” an acquaintance tells me via social networks.

The truth is that imagining the merengue forward for the next season is imposing, at least on paper. There will always be a hopeful resistance that egos outweigh talent, but history is full of confirmations to the contrary.