Ousmane Diomande has been linked to Chelsea, Newcastle United, Manchester City, Arsenal, and Liverpool in the last week.
The Sporting defender is reportedly the target of Premier League clubs who are thinking about making a summer transfer. Although Mauricio Pochettino’s team is reportedly leading, Chelsea will undoubtedly encounter opposition.
In the summer, Liverpool, Manchester City, and Arsenal might be in a stronger financial position than Chelsea or Newcastle and should be able to provide Champions League football, something that neither St. James’ Park nor Stamford Bridge will be able to provide.
Saturday’s edition of A Bola says all five Premier League clubs are following the defender closely, and Sporting ‘expect harassment’ from them in the summer.
The Lisbon club are hoping for a package worth €80m including bonuses, and A Bola point out Diomande is one of the lowest paid player’s in Sporting’s squad.
As it stands, his salary is just €300k per year and he very much deserves a big pay rise. His club want to hand out a renewal but it’s not clear whether they’d want a new release clause with that.
All of Chelsea, Newcastle United, Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool would offer more, and it seems somewhat unfair that Sporting can tie players to such high release clauses without the wages to match.
