Newcastle ‘very, very interested’ in Lens’ Abdukodir Khusanov | OneFootball

Abdukodir Khusanov (20) looks increasingly likely to leave RC Lens in January. The centre-back has impressed since asserting himself as a first-team regular at the start of the season, however, the club need to generate funds through player sales and the Uzbekistan international represents a highly bankable asset.

Lens looked to garner funds in the summer but struggled to do so. Both Kevin Danso and Neil El Aynaoui looked set to garner high fees with deals agreed with AS Roma (for the former) and AS Monaco (for the latter). However, both failed their respective medicals and ultimately remained with Les Sang et Or. Subsequently, both have seen their market value decrease.

15 clubs interested in Khusanov

The same certainly does not go for Khusanov. Lens are aware of that and are looking to cash in. The club have also confirmed that Jorge Mendes has been given a mandate to sell the defender amid interest from Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City, and Newcastle United.

“We decided to do it (give the mandate). We put all the options on the table. We analysed a lot and decided with Pierre (Dréossi, Lens’ CEO) to sign a mandate. It came from an analysis of the internal market, the price of a transfer, and lots of other factors,” said sporting director Diego Lopez.

Speaking on Lens Foot, Foot Mercato journalist Sébastien Denis revealed that Newcastle in particular are “very, very interested” in Khusanov, valued between €25-30m by Lens. However, as Denis added, they are just one of around 15 clubs in the race.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle