Arsenal are prepared to bid £122m for Kylian Mbappe, but the question is: should they?

• Arsenal are preparing a new bid for Mbappe
• Mbappe could lead Arsenal to many titles 
• However, £122m is an enormous amount of money and shouldn’t be spent lightly

According to The Sun, who cite L’Equipe, Arsenal will increase their bid for Kylian Mbappe to £122m. Not only would such a fee triple Arsenal’s current transfer record, it would smash the world record as well.

That Arsenal are the team bidding such an amount makes the story seem unbelievable. This is a club that has, after all, missed out on players due to a refusal to pay high prices.

Even if Arsene Wenger has changed his thinking, £122m is a huge step up from the £42.5m club-record fee he spent on Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid in 2013.

It’s not the sort of money Arsenal can spend without worry. Rich as they are, their budget is still finite. So we have to ask whether Kylian Mbappe is truly worth the money.

On the face of it, you’d have to say no. Mbappe is just 18-years-old with only a season’s worth of first team experience. Though he had an outstanding campaign in Ligue 1, there’s nothing to suggest he can replicate it.

He’s simply not had the chance to prove that yet so it’s an enormous risk to take.

Moreover, Arsenal have multiple areas they need to strengthen this summer. £122m may get us a great talent, but it could also get us two or three quality first team players. Arsenal have to seriously consider if paying up for Mbappe is the most efficient use of their money.

On the other hand, Mbappe is a supreme talent. 26 goals in 44 appearances is no small feat for someone so young, and goals against the likes of Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund and Juventus in the Champions League shows he relishes the big occasion.

If we assume the player will only get better with age, he’ll score a lot of goals in his career. That fee will be forgotten after a few prolific seasons.

The enormous fee could be offset, at least partly, by the sale of several players, while the domestic TV rights deal will ensure Arsenal will never be short of cash.

If £100m plus fees become the norm, it’s possible Arsenal could sell the player in the future and still profit on their investment.

There are also some intangibles to consider. Some would argue £122m is too much, just on principle alone. Arsenal have been admired for keeping their heads in an increasingly crazy market, and the idea the Londoners could yet become the craziest club of them all is an unsettling one.

But what price can you put on silverware? Ultimately, Arsenal would hope Mbappe would lead them to future Premier League titles and possibly even European success.

It’s all hypothetical, and until a more concrete source confirms it this bid remains questionable. Nonetheless, it’s exciting to consider the possibilities.