Paris Saint-Germain boss Laurent Blanc has revealed he wants to keep highly-rated midfielder Adrien Rabiot at the club amid reported interest from English Premier League heavyweights Chelsea.
The France youth international, 19, is contracted to the Parc des Princes until the summer of 2015 but has fallen out-of-favour with Blanc since the addition of Yohan Cabaye in January.
However, the French manager has insisted he wants to keep Rabiot, who faces competition from the likes of Cabaye, Blaise Matuidi, Marco Verratti and Thiago Motta for a first-team place, at the club.
“I have a lot of esteem for that boy who has a big potential,” said Blanc.
“During the first part of the season he proved he could expect more time in the team.
“Unfortunately he picked up a knee injury in January and Yohan Cabaye joined the club, which was a needed reinforcement because we didn’t have enough midfielders.
“I can understand he is impatient. But he must not forget he belongs to a very big club and you have to be patient in life.
“I hope he will stay at the club.”
The 19-year-old ace is by no means short of potential suitors, with the likes of Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea, Olympique de Marseille and West Bromwich Albion interested in his services, and could look to leave Paris when the transfer window re-opens in the summer.
Rabiot, who — like Axel Witsel, Fernandinho and Thibaut Courtois — is represented by Mondial Sport Management & Consulting Sarl, has scored two goals in 32 appearances in all competitions for PSG this season.
Martinez wants to keep Lacina Traore at Everton
Everton F.C. manager Roberto Martinez is hoping to keep on loan AS Monaco FC striker Lacina Traore at Goodison Park next season.
The Côte d’Ivoire international, who joined Monaco on a four-and-a-half-year deal for an undisclosed fee on 4 January, was loaned to Everton for the rest of the season just 20 days later.
Although Traore has been injured for much of his loan spell on Merseyside, Martinez is keen on retaining his services for the 2014/15 campaign.
“It depends on our European demands, if we are competing in Europe then we will need four strikers,” Martinez told the Liverpool Echo.
“Steven Naismith and Arouna Kone are two players who are important in our squad and we need to make sure we are at the start of the next season with a strong squad and in my eyes, we will be having four strikers in the group.
“Lacina is someone we really believe can bring something different to the team and he is someone we will try to see if we can get an opportunity to sit down and see what is the next chapter.”
Traore scored on his Everton — best-priced at 4/1 to achieve a top-4 finish in the Premier League this season — debut against Swansea City in the FA Cup on 16 February.
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