See Paris and play: what is known about Batrakov's transfer to PSG

RPL is preparing for a high-profile summer transfer "on the way out". It's about Alexei Batrakov. Very soon, the Lokomotiv midfielder may join the ranks of the current Champions League winner. The potential transfer of the 20-year-old Russian national team player to Paris Saint-Germain could be a record for the Railwaymen. For more information about the chronology and details of a possible deal between Loko and PSG, as well as Batrakov's prospects in France, see Izvestia.

Why PSG is interested in Batrakov

Last season was the third in adult football for the midfielder and the second full-fledged one. What is important: the last two seasons have been very productive for Alexey. Especially with a discount for a young age.

In the 2024/25 season, he played 29 games in the Russian Premier League, scoring 14 goals and providing seven assists. In the 2025/26 season, Alexey's goal+pass performance has become even higher: 13 goals and 10 assists in 28 games.

During these two seasons, Lokomotiv became dependent on Batrakov, and in some matches Alexey even took the team to the field with the captain's armband. And that's at the age of 20!

Unsurprisingly, its estimated value has more than doubled over the past year, from €12 million to €28 million. Alexey is currently the sole leader in the list of the most expensive RPL players; in second place is Krasnodar midfielder Eduard Spertsyan, estimated at €25 million.

What is known about the transfer right now

The first rumors began in early 2026, and active talks about the player's possible departure to Europe began in April. Then a loud insider appeared in the Russian sports media that the Paris club was following Alexei and collecting information about him.

In early May, Vladimir Kuzmichev, a representative of Batrakov's agency, confirmed information about the upcoming arrival of PSG sports adviser Luis Campos or one of his closest assistants to Moscow for talks with Lokomotiv.

At the end of May, there were even more specifics. First, football agent Timur Gurtskaya said that "Batrakov's transfer to PSG is closer than ever," and on the evening of May 30, immediately after the Parisians won the Champions League final match against Arsenal in London, Alexei himself posted a mysterious post on his Telegram channel with the caption "Just a photo." But it looks like it's not easy at all. In the photo, he is holding a branded T-shirt with an image exactly like on the PSG logo. It is unlikely that Alexey would have dared to make such a provocative post if he had not been sure of the potential transfer himself.

The next day, specific details of the future deal appeared — agent Dmitry Cheltsov announced them on the air of the European Review on the Comment.Show channel. According to him, the probability of the Russian's transfer to PSG is 95%, the bosses of both clubs have already held "more than ten meetings," and this week Kampusch will fly to Moscow to close the deal. Only "some kind of force majeure" can prevent this. The transfer can happen in two weeks. The deal will amount to €25 million, and Batrakov himself will receive a salary of € 5-6 million per season.

At the same time, there is a possibility that the player will cost PSG significantly less than the "insider price tags", but even the estimated value according to Transfermarkt. According to Alexey's current contract with Lokomotiv, the amount of compensation for European clubs is €20 million (for Russian clubs, the price is only negotiable). But it turned out that during this time he became even more valuable, and the conditions remained the same. In addition, they have one caveat: if the buyback option is activated, € 4 million will go to the player's side. And then Loko will receive only €16 million.

However, according to the latest information from Sport-Express, there has been no progress on the transfer to PSG in the last three weeks. The French club reported that it plans to hold talks after the Champions League final, but since then it has not contacted representatives of the 20-year-old football player. Therefore, for now, you should not believe in the previously mentioned figures — this is just an approximate guideline.

Nevertheless, there is a high probability that Batrakov's transfer to PSG will become a record sale in the history of Lokomotiv. The current record is €17.9 million for Senegalese striker Oumar Niasse, who joined English Everton in the winter of 2016 (at that time the player was estimated at €10 million).

Prospects at PSG

For Alexey himself, the transfer to PSG is undoubtedly a huge step forward. He is young, promising, with great scope for further development in order to gain a foothold at a respectable European level.

But one should not hope that Batrakov will immediately play at the heart of the Paris club. And don't be misled by the "case of Matvey Safonov," who managed to oust Frenchman Luc Chevalier from the position of number one. Safonov actually had one competitor, and Matvey took advantage of that player's slump.

In his role, Alexey is a central and attacking midfielder. And PSG have a lot of big names in these lines: two Portuguese players, Joao Neves and Vitinha, are worth a lot, each of whom is now valued at a cosmic €140 million. And okay, they are even older than Batrakov: Neves is 21, and Vitinya is 26. But there are also two equally talented peers in the PSG midfield: Warren Zaire-Emery (€80 million) and Senni Mailloux (€40 million). And that's not to mention the experienced Fabian Ruiz (€30 million) and Lee Kang-in (€28 million). According to this principle, Batrakov has so far surpassed only 18-year-old Spaniard Dro Fernandez (€10 million) in PSG.

If PSG intends to sell one of the midfielders in the summer transfer window, the Russian's chances of decent playing time will increase. Obviously, Alexey will not immediately become a player of the main clip, but at best he will start from the bench.

It is enough to look at the starting line-up of PSG in the Champions League final to assess the prospects of Batrakov getting into the base. For this game, Parisian head coach Luis Enrique came out with the three of Vitinha – Neves –Ruiz, and Zaire-Emery came out to replace one of them. It is unlikely that Alexey will be able to immediately oust any of these four if no one leaves the team in the summer.

Otherwise, the Russian will either follow Safonov's path, spending his first season as a reserve, or immediately go on loan to some strong middle-class player from the top 5 championships participating in European competitions.

Anyway, Batrakov's talent allows him to compete for a place at the PSG base. And from the perspective of prospects, this is a great transfer.