It seems that the novel has concluded, Mbappe could join the list of Galacticos who have arrived at Real Madrid

A Ballon d'Or winner whilst with AC Milan in 2007, Kaka moved to Madrid two years later after newly installed president Florentino Perez made good on his promise to sign the Brazilian. His £60 million move was somewhat overshadowed by Cristiano Ronaldo, who unbelievably also signed in the same summer, and Kaka never quite found the same form as he did at the San Siro.

The most controversial Galactico signing Madrid ever made was quite comfortably Luis Figo, who joined from arch-rivals Barcelona for a world record £37 million fee in the summer of 2000. His arrival at the Bernabeu made him public enemy number one at Barca, and upon his return to the Nou Camp with his new club he was greeted with venomous jeers and boos.

Beckham's wand of a right foot enjoyed a roller-coster spell at Madrid, where he shared the pitch with some of the club's all-time greats, but collectively they failed to land major trophies. However, he did secure a La Liga title in his final season in Spain, spearheading a championship challenge after initially being frozen out by boss Fabio Capello.

Before there was Cristiano, there was El Fenomeo or R9, who arrived in Madrid in the summer of 2002 having just won the World Cup Golden Boot after helping Brazil triumph in the Far East. Although injuries had taken their toll on the striker, his £40 million arrival was met with great excitement - especially after he scored twice on his long-awaited debut.

Zizou and Real Madrid were somehow meant to be and his legacy with the Spanish club began with his world-record-breaking move to the Bernabeu in 2001. By this point, the French midfielder was already a Ballon d'Or and World Cup winner and in his first season led Madrid to Champions League victory thanks to a memorable goal against Bayer Leverkusen in the final.

The Real Madrid record breaker

In whatever Real Madrid list you write, there usually is only one name who can be on top of it, and that's Cristiano Ronaldo. Having reached another level in his final days at Manchester United, the 2008 Ballon d'Or winner made the inevitable move to Madrid in the summer of 2009 for a record £80 million fee. The rest is very much history. In eight seasons, Ronaldo ripped up the record books by scoring an incredible 450 goals in 438 games and won four Champions Leagues as the Portuguese cemented his legacy as arguably the club's greatest-ever signing and player.