Barcelona have reportedly entered the race to sign Thomas Lemar from AS Monaco in the summer.
French publication L’Equipe have reported that Barcelona have set their sights on Thomas Lemar, and have joined the race to sign him in the summer. The AS Monaco midfielder has also been heavily linked with Chelsea, Manchester City and Atletico Madrid.
Lemar has enjoyed a sensational rise to prominence in his second season with Monaco, as he continues to play a fundamental role in the principality club’s rise to the top of French football. The Ligue 1 leaders have played some of the most eye catching attacking football this season, and Lemar has been a huge part of that success.
A mainstay on the left flank for Monaco, Lemar has played 42 games in all competitions for the club this season, scoring 11 goals while providing 10 assists. That run of form has seen Monaco table a new deal for the 21-year-old, despite there being more than 3 years left to run on his current contract.
However, Lemar is believed to be stalling on signing the new deal as he wants to weigh up his options as clubs begin to register an interest in him. In fact, the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City and Atletico Madrid have been tracking the French international closely in recent weeks.
Chelsea manager, Antonio Conte is eager to add to the depth of his squad as the Blues look set to compete on four fronts next season. He has, thus, been eyeing Lemar as a possible target for the summer.
Meanwhile, City boss Pep Guardiola is looking to freshen up his attacking options in the transfer window and having been impressed by Lemar in his side’s Champions League tie with Monaco, the Spaniard has been keeping an eye on him.
Atletico Madrid have been long-time admirers of Lemar’s talents and are back in the market for the youngster, after having a €25 million bid rejected by Monaco last summer.
The three clubs have now been joined by Barcelona in pursuit of Lemar, having been earmarked for a possible summer move following his impressive performances in the Champions League. He is believed to have made an impression with his versatility to play across midfield, which makes him a perfect fit at Camp Nou.
As a result, he could become an understudy in attack to the likes of Neymar and Lionel Messi, or feature in the midfield alongside Sergio Busquets and Andres Iniesta, where his directness and pacy outlet will add another dimension for Barcelona.
A fee of €30 million could be enough for Barcelona to secure the services of Lemar, but the report states that Leonardo Jardim is eager to keep hold of the player. It now remains to be seen if Barcelona or other interested clubs can persuade Lemar to leave Stade Louis II in the summer.
