Aurelien Tchouameni has said that Kylian Mbappe attempted to convince him to join Paris Saint-Germain last summer, but he was only interested in making the move to Real Madrid.
An impressive 2021-22 campaign for Monaco led to a host of speculation surrounding Tchouameni, with Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United among the clubs believed to have been keen to sign him.
However, Real Madrid won the race for his signature, with the Spanish and European champions acquiring the France international on a six-year contract for a fee in the region of €80m (£70m).
Tchouameni will play alongside Mbappe for France at the upcoming World Cup, and the midfielder said that he had "a very interesting conversation" with his international teammate over his plans last summer.
However, the 22-year-old has revealed that he was only ever interested in moving to Bernabeu.
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"I feel I'm where I always wanted to be, here at Real Madrid," L'Equipe quoted Tchouameni as saying. "It had a very interesting conversation with Kylian last summer. He wanted to know what I was planning to do.
"And he teased me by saying 'Come on, you have to come too' (to PSG). We laughed about it, but my choice was made a long time ago."
Tchouameni has taken on a key role for Real Madrid this season following the departure of Casemiro to Manchester United in the latter stages of the summer transfer window.
The former Monaco youngster has featured on 18 occasions for Carlo Ancelotti's side, contributing two assists in the process.
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"He has not surprised me because we know him well, to invest that much money in a player you have to know him. He is showing what we expected," Ancelotti said when describing the midfielder back in September.
"Tchouameni is a great midfielder, very focused on his work. He is an extraordinary signing."
The former Bordeaux youngster recently missed Real Madrid's matches with Girona and Celtic due to a muscular problem, but he played the full 90 minutes of Thursday's 2-1 victory over Cadiz, with Los Blancos returning to winning ways in the league.
Tchouameni will now link up with the France squad ahead of their World Cup campaign, with the Blues beginning heir tournament against Australia on November 22.
Matt Law
