Lucas Ocampos’s future remains up in the air after Olympique de Marseille miss out on the option to sign the AS Monaco man—could he be in-line for a switch to the Premier League?
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Failure to qualify directly for the Champions League may have cost OM the chance to sign one of the game’s bright young talents on a permanent deal.
Ocampos confirmed in February, according to Le Parisien [via Le 10 Sport], that he would definitely stay at Marseille had the club qualified for the Champions League.
Following up on his comments, reports confirm that the player has a clause in his loan deal to the Stade Velodrome from Monaco that would have allowed Marcelo Bielsa’s side to buy him automatically should they qualify directly for the Champions League group stage.
With only three games to go this season, Les Phoceens remain in fourth in the table. While they could still overhaul Monaco to take the third place, they cannot catch second-place Lyon.
OM retain hope of keeping the forward, with president Vincent Labrune confirming, “[we] are planning further talks this summer for the Argenine,” but OM are likely to face competition for the 20-year-old’s signature.
The forward is also wanted in the Premier League, with both Manchester United and Chelsea linked to his signature earlier this season.