OM continues to prospect to build the best team next season. Pablo Longoria has reached an agreement with Brice Samba, and must now tackle RC Lens.
Pablo Longoria is unleashed this week, and he is multiplying the avenues to bring Roberto De Zerbi the team that will suit him. Pau Lopez, considered not decisive enough, is pushed out, and could bounce back on the Como side, promoted to the Italian Serie A. To replace him, OM is thinking of Brice Samba, and this idea did not come out of the blue. It was in fact RC Lens which came to the front of Marseille leaders at the beginning of June, by offering the international goalkeeper. A desire to part ways linked to the recruitment of Hervé Koffi from Charleroi, and the Burkinabé arrives to be number 1. Result, Brice Samba, trained at OM, is invited to find a new club.
At 30, the Congolese-born goalkeeper has a good rating on the transfer market, even though he is coming off a disappointing season. Less efficient, he especially showed his limits in the Champions League, and did not manage to carry the “Blood and Gold” on his shoulders like the previous season. Nevertheless, Pablo Longoria holds him in high esteem and the fact that Didier Deschamps still trusts him to the point of making him his number 2 for the Blues means a lot to him.
Another big expense for OM?
Thus, OM and Samba were able to discuss with the agreement of RC Lens, and common ground was found on the salary and therefore the goalkeeper’s contract, as noted by informants Adam Manseur and Marwen Belkacem. However, it is still far from being completed because we will now have to find an agreement with the northern club, which intends to be greedy for one of the players with the highest market value in its squad. The transfer could be around 15 million euros. And despite his big appetite, Pablo Longoria will perhaps not be able to drop 15 or 20 million euros each time to bring in a player, even if some good sales are still planned at the start of the transfer window.
