Barcelona End Interest in Highly-Rated Lyon Duo Due to Wealth of Midfield Options

?Barcelona have reportedly ended their interest in Lyon midfield duo Nabil Fekir and Houssem Aouar.

The club have had scouts watching the pair, but a report from ?SPORT claims that they reached the conclusion that neither player is a viable addition to Ernesto Valverde’s squad.

FBL-FRA-LIGUE1-BORDEAUX-LYON

There have been strong links between Lyon captain Fekir and Barcelona in the past. The Catalan giants think he is talented and has good potential, but their over-stacked options in attacking midfield positions have deterred them from signing the 24-year-old Frenchman.

Since making his debut for Lyon in 2013, Fekir has scored 55 goals in 145 goals from midfield. He has scored an impressive 21 goals in 31 appearances so far this season, form that will surely catch the attention of other huge clubs. He is versatile too, as he can play as a ‘number 10’, on the wing or even in a central striker role.

A report from ?The Sun claims that Arsenal are now favourites for the 24-year-old’s signature, and quoted his agent as saying that all of his options will remain open.

“After considering my relationship with the Lyon president, we will make the best decision,” the Sun quote the unnamed agent as saying.

Meanwhile, 19-year-old Aouar has been deemed ‘not ready’ to compete at such a high level. Although they have previously expressed a small interest, they will not be signing the French-Algerian midfielder.

Aouar has scored 5 goals in 29 games for Lyon this season, and is another graduate of their successful and well-renowned academy.

The French-Algerian has been touted as a top prospect for some time, and if he were a bit younger than Barcelona may have been more inclined to submit a bid for him.


” data-viewability=”https://www.riddle.com/a/142907″>

Let’