Real Madrid are reportedly in a strong position to clinch the transfer of Lyon midfielder Houssem Aouar ahead of Arsenal.
According to Don Balon, the Gunners now seem to have decided to end their interest, potentially paving the way for Aouar to move to the Bernabeu instead.
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The report suggests Lyon could sell the classy young Frenchman for around £49.6million, which is a price Real are said to be able to afford.
As noted in Don Balon’s report, it perhaps makes sense that Arsenal are no longer prioritising Aouar after doing a late deal to strengthen their midfield with Thomas Partey in the summer.
Still, Aouar is a top young talent and could have given Mikel Arteta’s side a little more creativity in the middle of the park, with the 22-year-old perhaps an ideal long-term successor to the out-of-favour Mesut Ozil.
Madrid also need a signing of this type, however, as Luka Modric is now 35 years old and surely cannot maintain his high performance levels for that much longer.
Aouar surely has what it takes to play for a big club like Real and could be a fine fit for Zinedine Zidane’s style of play.