Décines-Charpieu (France) (AFP) – Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas said on Tuesday that it would be “difficult” for his club captain Nabil Fekir to find a better side, despite the persistent rumours over the midfielder’s future.
The 25-year-old came close to a move to Champions League runners-up Liverpool before the World Cup, but negotiations between the two clubs ended on June 9, with Lyon announcing he would stay in France.
Fekir made six substitute appearances, including in the final victory over Croatia on July 15, as France won the World Cup in Russia.
“In the current context, as a world champion and with a Lyon team with the ambition to do something very good next year, it’s difficult for Nabil to find a much better club,” Aulas claimed in a press conference.
Centre-back Marcelo has also been heavily linked with a move to the Premier League, and Aulas admitted he faces a struggle to keep both the Brazilian and Fekir before the English transfer window closes.
“I don’t fear anything,” he insisted. “If they leave it will be that we’ve found our amount, but we will do everything so that they don’t leave.
“We will surely have a bit of a storm in the week before the end of the English market on August 9.”
Lyon will return to the Champions League group stage after a one-year absence this season.
Fekir scored 18 goals in Ligue 1 last term as Lyon finished third behind champions Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco.
