It's the soap opera of the start of the transfer window in France, with several twists and turns already. After days of insistent rumors, coach Will Still confirmed it to the press on Friday: Samba “made it known that he wanted to leave the club”, despite the international goalkeeper's three and a half years of contract remaining (three selections ).
Consequently, it is already certain that the 30-year-old player, considered by his teammate Angelo Fulgini as “one of the best goalkeepers in the world”, will not play against Toulouse on Sunday (7 p.m.), during the 16th day of Ligue 1.
“A big boy”
Still had the right to a direct exchange with his captain, like “a big boy”, imagined the Lensois coach: “He told me “coach I received an offer, here is what I want to do TO DO “. From the moment the choice is made, there isn't much to discuss. »
The Anglo-Belgian insists, “keeping a player who no longer wants to be there is not necessarily a good thing for a locker room”. But the transfer window being what it is, a few hours after these declarations, Friday afternoon, general director Pierre Dréossi tempered: “Nothing has been done. (…) We will speak out when he leaves and if he leaves. »
The aftermath already anticipated?
Because since then, the agreement in principle with Stade Rennais mentioned by several media has been shelved, according to RMC. Lens confirms: “It’s at a standstill. »
Complicated, in these conditions, to still imagine the N.2 goalkeeper of the Blues waxing the Lensois bench throughout the second part of the season.
Considering the financial context – management mentioned in La Voix du Nord a need to sell players for 40 million euros by the end of January – can Lens deprive itself of the departure of this major element?
Especially since Will Still, who will start Hervé Koffi against Toulouse in the Artesian cages, has already mentioned “ongoing recruitment” to compensate for the future transfer of his captain.
“It’s up to us to mourn and accept these things”
The coach knows the song and knew when he arrived last summer “that executives from the period before (him) were going to leave the club”. “It should have been the case with Kevin (Danso, whose transfer to AS Roma finally collapsed last summer), it will still be the case with other players,” he explained.
While Abdukodir Khusanov, Danso and Facundo Medina are being courted, Lens is groping forward in this transfer window where rumors are rife.
Still still wants to be ambitious and Fulgini affirms that the potential departure of Samba does not make “everyone want to leave”. “It’s up to us to mourn and accept these things,” he commented. It will take at least that to continue to believe in European places.
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