Houssem Aouar will be leaving Lyon in the next few months.
This is, in essence, what L’Equipe are reporting on Monday morning, explaining that without any European football next season, the Ligue 1 side will be forced to sell one of their star players, who, in their words, ‘is arriving at the end of a cycle’ with his club.
The big questions are when, where to and for how much, with Manchester City a potential answer for the second one.
The French newspaper explain the midfielder is ‘followed very closely’ by the Etihad club, ‘where the manager Pep Guardiola appreciates him’.
That’s not secret in itself, since the Spaniard has publicly praised Aouar in the past, and with an affordable price believed to be around €50m (the same price RMC Sport reported last month), it wouldn’t break the bank either.
For Lyon, such a sale would allow them to remould their team, having already brought in Bruno Guimarães in January for €20m, who will likely be their midfield’s fulcrum to replace the departing 21-year-old at the heart of their plans.
Alongside Thiago Mendes and Jeff Reine-Adelaïde, the Brazilian will allow a transition away from Aouar, giving another fanbase (perhaps Manchester City’s) the chance to appreciate Aouar close up.
We now just have to wait and see who comes forward for the France U21 international, but at that price, he will unlikely be short of suitors from abroad.
