This is Laurent Blanc’s priority for the end of the Olympique Lyonnais transfer window. In addition to being annoyed to see his best promises leave (Castello Lukeba in Leipzig, Bradley Barcola in Paris Saint-Germain), the Cévennes still does not see the sentry he is looking for land. However, its leaders are not idle and multiply the tracks in recent days since more than half a dozen players are followed by Matthieu Louis-Jean, especially when the latter understood that the track leading to the Sevillian Guido Rodriguez had definitely evaporated in recent hours.
From Baptise Santamaria (Rennes), to Mady Camara (Olympiacos) via Pathé Ciss (Rayo Vallecano), Rade Krunic (AC Milan), Mohamed Al-Musrati (Braga) and many others, OL felt that he was going to have all the trouble in the world to complete the arrival of a defensive midfielder, as Laurent Blanc has been demanding since last December. Lyon has therefore activated a sort of plan D leading to Paul Akouokou as we revealed to you exclusively on Thursday evening. This Ivorian international midfielder (4 selections) evolves at Real Betis like Guido Rodriguez. But he is far from having the same level, even if he played 18 matches in all competitions with the Sevillian team last year.
Paul Akouokou at the heart of an imbroglio between several agents
Not really considered a serious option until the last few days, the Akouokou case is now at the very top of the pile and has moved ahead of all the others. Given the few possibilities he has left, Matthieu Louis-Jean has decided to take second place on this astonishing track, claimed and validated by a Laurent Blanc who may not be there in a few weeks, and who will cost the trifle of €3 million with a three-year contract.
However, one element could derail this panic buy, namely the imbroglio that exists between several agents. This last point worries the Lyon management and represents an additional complexity to the feasibility of this surprising deal, which is therefore not yet fully completed. Nevertheless, the player is expected in Lyon this Friday to pass his medical examination. This longest day of the summer transfer window will be endless for Lyon supporters, and a final reversal of the situation cannot be ruled out.
