Lille add Martin Braithwaite to their shortlist amid Jonathan David’s exit | OneFootball

With only one year remaining on his deal, Jonathan David (24) is pushed towards the exit by Lille OSC’s board, which is looking to cash in on their gifted striker. The North side have started searching the market for a potential successor, with Martin Braitwhaite (33) being among the names on the list, according to L’Equipe.

Lille are at the beginning of a new era. With Paulo Fonseca’s departure for AC Milan and Bruno Genésio’s nomination as his successor, Les Dogues now have to build a team while facing multiple departures. With his contract set to expire in 2025, Leny Yoro (18) earned a deserved move to Manchester United, while the North side received an unexpected €62M guaranteed fee. Same situation for Jonathan David, who is gathering interest from Premier League but also from AS Roma and Spanish outfit Atletico Madrid, who see in the Canadian a potential successor to Alvaro Morata’s (31) transfer to AC Milan. Lille are already prepared to lose the gifted centre forward, who logged 26 goals in 47 games last season, and are circling the waters to find his ideal successor.

Multiple profiles have been scouted by Les Dogues, with Mainz’ Ludovic Ajorque (30) being one of them, according to a recent report from Foot Mercato. Another report by L’Equipe reveals that Lille have reignited their interest in Braithwaite, who was already a target of the North outfit last summer. Now a free agent following his contract expiration with Espanyol Barcelone, the La Liga 2 top scorer last season with 22 goals scored in 43 games is free to talk to any club. On Saturday, Fabrizio Romano announced that the Denmark international was close to joining Greece’s outfit Olympiacos, but the deal is now on hold following a disagreement over personal terms.

GFFN l Grégoire Devaux