Chelsea ready to battle Arsenal for 6ft 3in warrior with €80m release clause | OneFootball

As we head towards the end of the January transfer window, the need for clubs to make signings is more acute, and Sporting’s brilliant Ousmane Diomande is a player of interest to two London clubs.

A short while ago, Man United were linked with Diomande, ostensibly because former Sporting manager, Ruben Amorim, had moved to Old Trafford to take over from Erik ten Hag.

Chelsea favourites for Ousmane Diomande

No offers have appeared to be forthcoming from the Red Devils and, according to sources close to the player, it’s Chelsea and Arsenal that are closest to landing him at present.

Ousmane Diomande in action during the pre-season friendly match between Everton and Sporting Lisbon. (Photo by Jess Hornby/Getty Images)

Sources have also advanced that Bundesliga giants, Bayern Munich, have made their interest known, giving the 21-year-old powerhouse a big career decision to make.

The player has a release clause of €80m, and though publicly the Portuguese outfit insist that this is paid, sources believe that a firm offer of between €50-€60m would be enough for Sporting to consider parting with him.

It’s understood that the player’s own preference would be to play in the Premier League, so Vincent Kompany has an uphill struggle to convince Diomande otherwise.

Ousmane Diomande favours London switch

Of the two London clubs, the Blues would appear to be the most in need of a defender of Diomande’s quality.

Indeed, a merry-go-round at Stamford Bridge has become the norm during a transfer window.

From Arsenal’s point of view, there’s simply no need to replace either Gabriel or William Saliba, and Diomande isn’t going to move to North London to play second fiddle.