Brighton & Hove Albion are lining up a move for LOSC Lille defender Ibrahim Amadou next summer. According to recent reports, the Seagulls are battling it out with Crystal Palace and West Ham United in pursuit of the French defender.
The Ligue 1 ace looked set to make a switch to Selhurst Park having travelled via train to London in the hopes of completing a move but Lille refused to agree a fee. It is believed that Palace were ready to cough up a £2m loan fee as well as £14m for a permanent move at the end of the season, but Lille were reluctant to do business in January, despite the Eagles increasing their offer to push a deal through.
The Ligue 1 side are currently struggling in the French top tier this season slumping to the 19th position but now face the possibility of being relegated due to their dire financial situation regardless after breaking French financial fair play rules. The club still needs to raise €25m to avoid the sanctions. They are believed to have asked for a fee in the region of £17.6m for the player in January but this doesn’t seem to have deterred Brighton as they plan to land the player’s signature in the near future.
The Seagulls currently find themselves in 10th place in the Premier League standings with a tally of 34 points in 29 league matches. Chris Hughton is likely to be on the lookout for a defensive option in the summer transfer period with his side shipping in 38 league goals so far in this campaign. The addition of Amadou will undoubtedly bolster his defensive options going forward and could go a long way in helping them survive in the top tier of English football next season.
Amadou is highly versatile and can operate in a number of different positions. He can play as a defensive midfielder or as a centre-back which makes him an ideal fit for the Seagulls. The French ace has featured in 28 matches for Lille in all competitions this season. He has also represented France at the Under-19 level during his youth career.
At 24, he still has his peak years ahead of him which Brighton could look to utilise in the coming years. It remains to be seen what lies ahead in the future of Amadou and whether the Seagulls can fend off stiff competition in pursuit of his signature next summer.
