Report: Liverpool face renewed challenge for £45m target Pep Guardiola deems ‘incredible’

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Reported Liverpool target Houssem Aouar is now said to also be on the radar of Chelsea as well as Manchester City, according to ESPN.

As reported by RMC Sport earlier this week, Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool are one of the teams that remain active regarding a potential swoop.

Aouar has been a star for the Ligue 1 side over the last three years, becoming one of the top young midfielders in Europe during his time with the French outfit.

Despite being just 21, Aouar has clocked up an impressive 133 senior appearances for Lyon, with 24 goals and 24 assists under his belt already.

This season, the France Under-21 ace made 37 appearances for Lyon, scoring nine goals and claiming seven assists.

However, Lyon appear set for a huge financial blow due to the fact they have missed out entirely on Europe for next season.

The Ligue 1 campaign was curtailed prematurely in wake of the global health crisis, and the points-per-game way to settle proceedings saw them finish seventh.

As a result, Lyon are now reportedly in need to sell their top stars this summer to bring in more funds to improve the squad, and are thought to have valued Aouar at £45million.

As well as being linked with Liverpool, Chelsea and Man City are also said to be in pursuit, claims ESPN.

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Aside from his impressive stats, Aouar has also been spoken of very highly in footballing circles for a number of years now.

The France Under-21 international has been highly praised by Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola, who told Sky Sports: “He is incredible.

“He is always calm with the ball at his feet with an excellent technical quality.”

Therefore, Lyon’s potential need to sell one of their key assets at a seemingly reduced price could be Liverpool’s gain.

That said, £45million might still be fairly steep for them this summer unless they can recoup some money via player sales, while Man City and Chelsea could be tough opposition for Aouar’s services.