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| Onana Amadou midfielder of Belgium during the UEFA Nations League Group A4 match between Belgium and Netherlands at the stadium King Baudouin on June 3, 2022 in Brussels, Belgium. |
Arsenal and West Ham
United are reportedly in talks with Lille and Belgium
midfielder Amadou Onana.
The 20-year-old has enjoyed a promising first season
in France after joining Les Dogues from German club Hamburg in a £6million deal
last August.
Onana made 42 appearances in all competitions during
his maiden campaign with Lille and helped his side reach the last 16 of the
Champions League before they succumbed to 4-1 aggregate defeat against Chelsea.
His form has brought him to the attention of Gunners
manager Mikel Arteta as he looks to strengthen his midfield options following
the departures of Lucas Torreira and Ainsley Maitland-Miles over the summer.
However, they will face competition from London
rivals West Ham and Ligue 1 club Monaco, who are looking to replace Aurelien
Tchouameni after he joined Real Madrid last month.
French outlet RMC Sport have reported Arsenal have
already held talks with Onana’s agents about a potential move to North London
as Arteta looks
to provide competition for Thomas Partey.
The Belgian star was given a glowing assessment by
Hamburg’s Head of Sport Jonas Boldt following his move to Lille as he backed
the midfielder to move to greater heights during his career.
He told totalfootballanalysis.com: “It was important
for Amadou to have a player next to him at the beginning. But in the long term,
I think he can lead a midfield as a central player.“Overall, though, you’d certainly be well advised to
use him as a box-to-box player with a more defensive midfielder behind him.“If you put an experienced player next to him, then
he will certainly be able to take on the level in France and in the Champions
League.“A French first division club that works seriously
and quietly is certainly more conducive to Amadou’s next career step than a
direct move to a top international club, where he may not get as much playing
time.“Therefore, it was of course also important for us
to include a clause in the contract that would secure us additional income if
Amadou were to be sold on. We are convinced that Amadou will be an even better
player in Lille and will take the next step in his development.”
Arsenal have also been linked with a move for
Leicester City star Youri Tielemans and Lens midfielder Seko Fofana in recent
days.
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