Houssem Aouar’s refusal to join a warm down session after Lyon’s tie against Angers has forced the Ligue 1 side to punish him, and therefore he will miss this weekend’s tie against Reims.
This was reported by L’Equipe on Friday and the newspaper further explained the 22-year-old was left frustrated after potential suitors like Arsenal, PSG and Juventus didn’t sign him in the summer.
It was also stated the Gunners were ‘too timid’ with their attempts for the attacking midfielder.
L’Equipe’s claims have been relayed by Calciomercato, and they add that in the final days of the last window, the Serie A winners ‘reconnected’ with Lyon and the Frenchman’s entourage, in view of returning for the player in 2021.
It’s claimed Andrea Pirlo likes Aouar and has the ‘strong approval’ of Fabio Paratici.
However, the deal remains complicated because Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas ‘always reiterated’ his star’s valuation will not be less than €60-70m, despite the Covid-19 crisis. The Turin club are unwilling to meet these figures.
In reality, even Aulas knows those figures are unrealistic and it feels like Calciomercato exaggerating.
For the Old Lady to sign Aouar, the report says there must be a ‘double opening’ from Lyon. The first one from an economic point of view and the other would the formula for transfer.
Juve are looking at an exchange operation and if this isn’t feasible for Lyon, the Italian champions want Aouar on a two-year loan deal with ‘subsequent redemption’, which will include a deferred payment option.
Calciomercato end their report by stating that ‘like Arsenal and PSG, Juve did not pull out of the Aouar race’.
