Olympique Lyonnais wants fresh blood. A few months ago, the Groupama Stadium residents boasted two quality number 9s in Alexandre Lacazette and Georges Mikautadze. The former left the club at the end of his contract to join Neom in Saudi Arabia. The latter was sacrificed and sold to Villarreal at the end of the transfer window. Since then, OL has lacked a top-class striker, no offense to Martin Satriano, who joined the Rhône club at the end of the summer and has been performing quite well. But Paulo Fonseca is "forced" to improvise, having notably fielded Pavel Sulc up front. This was the case against Strasbourg and yesterday against Paris FC, where the Czech striker scored a brace. But this doesn't change Les Gones' plans.
At the end of the last transfer window, Matthieu Louis-Jean didn't hide his disappointment regarding the signing of a center-forward. "The last day left a bitter taste. We wanted to sign one last striker, but we couldn't. The target we wanted, we couldn't get due to contract issues. We were very disappointed, but we didn't want to sign someone just for the sake of signing someone. We decided to stay as we were. We wanted Martin (Satriano), we were following him. He'll give us motivation; he's eager to bounce back after his serious injury. We all worked together because it was an important moment for the club; we were talking about the club's survival. We strictly followed the DNCG's guidelines. As an aside, there was one player for whom we didn't want to exceed our budget."
Endrick is desperate in Madrid
He added: “We spoke with quite a few agents; we could have signed a striker in the final hours of the transfer window, but we didn’t because we didn’t want to repeat past mistakes. We know the squad isn’t complete; we would have liked to have an additional striker.” Nearly two months later, Lyon identified the perfect player: Endrick. He also happens to share the same agent as Malick Fofana, which is certainly a good thing in these kinds of negotiations. As explained on our website , the Lyon project is very appealing to Endrick’s camp . Having long resisted leaving Real Madrid , where he hopes to establish himself, the Brazilian opened the door to a loan move this winter.
The goal is to play again, something he hasn't had the chance to do at Real Madrid for the past five months. Since his injury, Xabi Alonso hasn't given him any playing time (he's been on the bench eight times this season). He's the only outfield player, along with Ferland Mendy (also injured), who has played zero minutes this season. It's a very difficult situation for the former Palmeiras player. Marca reports that the Brazilian is "dying inside" in silence, consumed by rage and frustration, and doesn't understand his treatment. He also doesn't grasp Xabi Alonso's tactical choices. But those around him are urging him to be patient. While waiting for a solution, Endrick is giving his all in training.
Lyon are well placed but
In Brazil, where his every move is closely followed, UOL , O Globo , TNT Sports , and Globo Esporte confirm that Lyon are indeed interested and, more importantly, that they have a good chance of securing a free loan with partial salary coverage. It's the destination and the project that most appeal to Endrick, who has already agreed to continue negotiations for a loan during the winter transfer window, according to UOL . While Lyon can be hopeful, it's not a done deal yet. There's still quite a bit of time before the winter transfer window opens. The fact that this information has leaked to the press so early isn't necessarily good news for Lyon, who may fear the competition. This is precisely what UOL explained on Thursday.
The Brazilian publication, which has spoken with the 19-year-old striker's entourage, explains that Lyon (OL) meets all the conditions set by the player and his agents for a loan. However, Endrick's camp remains open to other offers before the January transfer window opens. In recent weeks, Valencia, Real Sociedad, and West Ham have been mentioned as potential destinations, not to mention Marseille (OM) or PSG (PSG). Furthermore, those close to the player believe his situation could still change at Real Madrid under Xabi Alonso, who might use him more and potentially alter his future. It's also worth noting that Real Madrid, which has ruled out a sale, initially wanted to loan him to a Spanish club so he could play in the same league, given that he will obtain Spanish citizenship in six months. But the ball is in Endrick's court. For the moment, he is leaning towards OL, who hope to send the ball into the back of the net and secure his signature as soon as possible.
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