Of all the clubs interested in the central defender, this is the one that has already taken the survey; Price of the termination clause (80 million euros) considered high; English people hoping to be able to negotiate below
Interest in Ousmane Diomande is high, especially in England, where several clubs have already targeted the 20-year-old Leonine central defender. But it is Newcastle who are at the front of the race, A BOLA found out, as they have already carried out some surveys to understand how they can rescue the Ivorian central defender.
The club from the north of England wants to understand what value it can sign the Sporting player, whose release clause is 80 million euros. And for now, this is the value indicated by the administration of the green and whites, considered high by the English who, however, have the expectation of being able to negotiate below this value.
Since returning from the African Cup of Nations (CAN), which took place in January and February in Côte d’Ivoire – Diomande participated in two games on the Ivorian journey towards the title -, the central defender was an option in 13 games for the green and whites, but not with the same influence seen in the first half of the season, which then opens up Newcastle’s hope of being able to negotiate further down. Something that, however, is not, for now, in the plans of the lions, who know that more clubs continue to pay close attention to Ousmane Diomande – Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, Bayern and Juventus, for example, also observed him at CAN .
The renewal
The defender has a contract with the green and whites until 2027. Signed in January 2023 from Midtjylland, who had loaned him to League 2 club Mafra, Diomande is at one of the lowest levels of salaries practiced in Alvalade: he earns around 300 thousand euros per year at a time when his status in the squad is already much higher. Hence the salary increase to a more appropriate level. With regard to the years of connection, the increase has been aimed at one more year, but it will not be surprising if the lions add two more seasons, until June 2029. The termination clause is already 80 million euros, equal to the of Fresneda, Pedro Gonçalves and Morten Hjulmand, the second highest in the squad – only Viktor Gyokeres has a higher clause, of 100 million euros.
To be able to sign the defender, the Leonine administration paid 7.5 million euros. The contours of the deal, however, go beyond this value, because in the end the central player could be 5 million euros more expensive, that is, it could cost a total of 12.5 million. For each round of 30 games (at least 45 minutes on the field) the Lions pay a portion of these 5 million, up to 90 games. The first of these (€1.66 M) has already been paid, which means that the Ivorian’s sporting performance with the lion on his chest is justifying the financial investment made just over a year ago.
