On August 17th, we carried a report from L’Equipe, who stated Houssem Aouar has found an agreement with Nottingham Forest over personal terms.
A day later, Foot Mercato stated the Tricky Trees’ talks with Lyon over a deal for the 24-year-old had ‘come to a stop’.
It was also said Nottingham Forest were not happy with the manner in which the Ligue 1 side’s sporting director, Vincent Ponsot, conducted negotiations.
Le Progrès, relayed by But! Football Club, have dismissed these claims, and give their take on this case.
They say Lyon didn’t try to raise stakes between Steve Cooper’s side and Crystal Palace, nor did Ponsot derail the deal for the midfielder. Nottingham Forest’s offer for Aouar was ‘simply unacceptable’.
It’s claimed the newly promoted Premier League side have ‘not offered better than €10m’ for the France international and wanted to pay this fee in six instalments. This ‘surprised’ Lyon as they are not accustomed to these deals, when it comes to such a low fee.
Despite this, Le Progrès say talks between Nottingham Forest and Lyon for Aouar have ‘not completely broken down’.
