According to reports from French publication L’Equipe yesterday afternoon (summarised in English by 90min.com and GetFootballNewsFrance.com) Lyon have issued an ultimatum to star striker Alexandre Lacazette – sign a new contract or leave the club.
The 24 year-old produced incredible form for the Stade de Gerland outfit last season. His 27-goal league haul was bettered throughout Europe’s leading top flights by only Ballon d’Or duo Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, seeing him claim Ligue 1’s Player of the Year award for 2014/15 and a second consecutive slot in the division’s Team of the Year.
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That’s generated plenty of interest in the France international; Arsenal and Liverpool were linked in June, whilst Manchester United have also been mooted as potential suitors.
And according to L’Equipe, the English trio’s chances of signing Lacazette have dramatically improved over the last 24 hours.
The Lyon management have been extremely disappointed with the 5 foot 9 attacker’s performances in pre-season amid a lengthy contract dispute and they’ve felt forced to deliver him an ultimatum – sign a new deal or prepare to be sold.
How much Les Gones would expect for their award-winning front-man remains to be seen. The Express, also reporting from the L’Equipe article, suggest a deal with Liverpool worth £21million could be reached – but manager Hubert Fournier publicly valued Lacazette at in excess of £40million last month.