Mikel Arteta and Ousmane Diomande (Photo by Michael Regan, Lars Baron/Getty Images)
Arsenal and Chelsea are both keeping a close eye on Sporting Lisbon defender Ousmane Diomande ahead of this summer, CaughtOffside understands.
The talented young Ivory Coast international has long been on the radar of several top clubs around Europe, and it’s currently Arsenal and Chelsea showing the strongest interest in him.
Sources with a close understanding of Diomande’s situation have told CaughtOffside that his current release clause of €80m is viewed as too high by the London giants.
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Instead, there is a feeling that they may be able to negotiate that down to something more like an initial €50m, with some possible bonuses and clauses to satisfy Sporting.
Still, CaughtOffside understands Sporting are confident in their €80m stance as they believe Diomande will likely have other big-name suitors from around Europe this summer.
Ousmane Diomande to Arsenal or Chelsea?
Diomande looks like he has a big future in the game, so this could be a crucial summer for his career as a move perhaps looks inevitable.
Sporting are clear they’ll be no pushovers, though, so it will be up to Arsenal, Chelsea or anyone else to come up with a good proposal.
The 21-year-old will also surely have a big say over his next destination, however, so it will be interesting to see if he opts for the Emirates Stadium or Stamford Bridge.
For now, Arsenal probably looks like the more appealing project, but it’s also harder to imagine Diomande would start regularly for Mikel Arteta’s side.
Arsenal already have William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes as their first-choice central defence, while the likes of Jurrien Timber, Ben White, Jakub Kiwior and Riccardo Calafiori can also fill in there.
Diomande would probably play more at Chelsea, where Enzo Maresca looks in need of someone to come in as an upgrade on slightly inconsistent performers like Levi Colwill, Tosin Adarabioyo and Benoit Badiashile, while Wesley Fofana has also proven really injury prone during his time in west London.
