French Ligue One club Lille have become famous for their ability to spot potential in players and develop their talent.
The likes of Eden Hazard, Idrissa Gueye and most recently Nicolas Pepe have shone brightly for LOSC before moving on to more high-profile leagues and in some cases winning major honours.
Now it seems just a year after Pepe left France for Arsenal for a fee of around of £72million, another highly-rated attacking forward Victor Osimhen could be making a similarly big-money transfer.
The Nigerian international forward only arrived at Lille last summer from Belgian climb Charleroi for £10million plus a further £2.5m in add-ons. The deal looks like yet another extremely shrewd one from the French club.
The 21-year-old has gone on to contribute 18 goals and six assists this season, 13 of the goals coming in the French top-flight. The youngster’s performances may not have come as much of a surprise though, as the prior season he scored a respective 19 goals in 34 appearances in the Belgian top-flight.
A move from Belgian top-flight to Ligue One is a step up. It now seems he could be making another step up when the next transfer window opens.
Oshimen’s displays seem to have alerted several Premier League clubs, with Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester United all reportedly interested in signing the forward this summer.
However, they are not the only reported interested parties in the talented young forward. It seems that Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid like the look of Osimhen too, while AC Milan, Roma and Napoli have been monitoring his situation. With a mooted price tag of around £90million, only the elite clubs will be able to afford the striker, though.
If Osimhen leaves for a hefty profit this summer, then no doubt the Lille will go out and pick up another young gem to polish and sell at a later date.