Fekir’s “gentleman’s agreement” to leave Lyon

Olympique Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas and Nabil Fekir have a “gentleman’s agreement” between them that the playmaker would be allowed to leave the club this summer, according to L’Equipe.

Having spent his entire career up to that point at Lyon, the club accepted a bid from Liverpool of around €52 million for his services last summer. The player had even agreed personal terms with the Merseysiders, only for everything to fall apart at the eleventh hour, reportedly due to medical reasons. It seems that Liverpool’s medical staff were left unconvinced by the way Fekir’s ACL tear in 2015 was dealt with, and they withheld the green light for the deal to go ahead. Fekir returned to France and subsequently won the World Cup with his national team, but the deal hasn’t been revisited since.

However, the future of the 25-year-old attacking midfielder seems to be lying away from Lyon. A year has passed, and he has made 27 appearances for his club this season with no hint of old knee problems reappearing.