Lille rule out Alexsandro and Ngal’ayel Mukau departures, unless… | OneFootball

Lille OSC have lost several key players this summer. The likes of Jonathan David, Lucas Chevalier, Angel Gomes, Bafodé Diakité, Gabriel Gudmundsson, and Rémy Cabella have all left the club. Budget replacements have come in, and there is no questioning that this season’s Lille squad is weaker than the one that finished the last.

A 3-3 draw to Stade Brestois on the opening day of the Ligue 1 season highlighted their defensive frailty in particular. LOSC are desperate not to see their squad weakened further, although that does not mean that there won’t be departures.

Speaking in a press conference on Friday, Lille president Olivier Létang opened the door to a departure in midfield for either Nabil Bentaleb or André Gomes. However, he confirmed that key players would not be leaving.

€70m bids could change Lille’s mind

Alexsandro and Ngal’ayel Mukau, both targets for Premier League clubs this summer, fall into that category. “The desire is to keep them. No later than this morning did I say in a call that, for one of our players, the door was closed,” said the Lille president.

He did caveat his statement. “Unless an offer of €70m arrives. It would be difficult to refuse something that is unrefuseable, but the objective now is to keep the lads who are here. I have said it, the desire is to have a team that is competitive,” he added.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle