Sporting close door on Ousmane Diomande after Club World Cup | OneFootball

Ousmane Diomande enters the new season with an enhanced status at Sporting. After securing a starting spot in the Ivory Coast national team during the World Cup, the centre-back is seen by Rui Borges as one of the main pillars of Sporting’s defence for 2026/27.

The Ivorian international has recovered from a muscle injury in his right thigh that kept him out of the Portuguese Cup final against Torreense and also the Ivory Coast’s first two matches at the World Cup. Now fully fit, he started in the 2-0 win over Curaçao and impressed coach Emerse Faé, who is expected to keep faith with the defender.

The progress of Diomande continues to attract the attention of several European clubs. Leeds remain among the interested parties and are expected to continue monitoring the player, although Sporting are not willing to open negotiations. At Alvalade, the intention is to keep the centre-back and hand him the role of leader of the defensive line next season.

That confidence was also reflected in the contract renewal signed in January. The deal was extended until June 2030, with the release clause kept at €80 million, underlining the player’s importance to the structure led by Frederico Varandas.

Sporting’s investment in Diomande currently stands at €14.5 million. After the initial €7.5 million paid to Midtjylland, Sporting’s SAD triggered the performance-related clauses included in the agreement and also acquired a further 10% of the player’s economic rights, reducing the share of any future capital gain due to the Danish club.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.