Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve been covering a few reports from Belgium and France concerning Lille loanee Soualiho Meïté, who is shining bright for Zulte Waregem in the Jupiler League.
The 22-year-old defensive midfielder has attracted a lot of attention from clubs around Europe, including the Premier League, with both Crystal Palace and Stoke City the frontrunners to get a deal done.
In fact, Mercato365 on Monday report that Alan Pardew’s side have already made an €8m offer to Lille for Meïté, and while Mark Hughes is allegedly prepared to match that bid to try and bring him to the Brittania Stadium, the Londoners remain favourites.
However, there’s a few twists.
Firstly, Zulte Waregem have a €300k buy-out clause in the loan deal, which they would have no problem activating, which they must do before the 1st of April.
Secondly, Soualiho Meîté is also prioritising, if possible, a return to Lille rather than moving abroad.
Mercato365 explain that the player’s entourage have confirmed this, with Lille’s new project (they are in the process of changing owners) appealing to the young midfielder.
Lille themselves want to bring him back, but have to somehow convince Zulte Waregem to not pay the €300k clause, which is what Luis Campos, advisor to the new prospective owner, is trying to do personally.
It’ all a bit complicated, but we’ll be keeping an eye on it, as this could quickly become even messier in the coming week or so.
