“Three very big clubs are interested in Houssem. Two in the short term and one in the medium term, in a year ”. At the end of September, in the last days of a summer transfer window as long as it was economically anemic, Jean-Michel Aulas had presented the situation of his attacking midfielder, which he was willing to sell. The “medium-term” track was going well for PSG, as L’Equipe revealed at the beginning of October.
According to sources close to OL, the Parisian club had clearly expressed its interest in the relay medium, which has a selection for the France team, without going much further in the terms of a possible operation. Last summer, Paris did not have the means to buckle the player, as its low cost market confirmed. While Manchester City were keenly interested earlier in the summer, the two potential buyers eventually turned away by Lyon were Arsenal, who made a € 30million offer with bonuses deemed irrelevant in Lyon’s corridors, and the Juventus Turin, very enterprising in the home stretch, but who did not have the means to meet the high ambitions of OL. He budgeted for a sale of Aouar in his forecast for the season.
Tuchel praises himself
Before the Covid, the club placed its value around 60 million euros. He is now aware that this amount will be difficult to achieve, even though the 22-year-old under contract until June 2023 is appreciated for his technique, his vision of the game and his personality on the pitch.
Asked about Lyon’s ability to play at PSG, Thomas Tuchel praised himself: “We have a lot of respect for our opponents, we don’t talk about other players. But it is clear that Aouar is a key player for Lyon and a member of the France team. It makes sense that he can play for all the teams in the world. He is talented, young, very strong and decisive for Lyon. “
In the midfielder’s entourage, we remained discreet about the Parisian interest last summer, while recognizing that it was real and the contact continuous. Houssem Aouar, for his part, has never closed the door to PSG. The arrival of Rafinha at the end of the transfer window, in a fairly similar profile, can block the horizon and, seen from Lyon, Paris is not the favorite to complete the operation, because its means are constrained by the race for extensions of Neymar and Mbappé in particular. OL would also prefer to avoid selling to the rival they dream of getting closer to, but they will not be choosy if Paris brings the expected sum on a devalued market.
