Yan Diomande has welcomed speculation linking him with the likes of Chelsea and Real Madrid, insisting such rumours make him ‘completely satisfied’ and supply extra ‘motivation’ to succeed.
Diomande has enjoyed a remarkable debut season with RB Leipzig having arrived in Germany from Leganes last summer, racking up 12 goals and 7 assists in his opening 32 Bundesliga appearances.
The 19-year-old winger hit the bottom running and has rapidly established himself as probably the most exciting attacking talents in European football, along with his barnstorming form attracting the attentions of a bunch of Europe’s elite sides.
Bayern Munich and Real Madrid have each been credited with a robust interest in Diomande in recent months. The Premier League has also been mooted as a possible destination for the teenage sensation, with Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool all heavily linked.
Leipzig’s hierarchy were adamant that Diomande was not on the market within the January transfer window, with club chiefs determined to not lose any key players during their fight for Champions League qualification.
Nevertheless, there may be a growing acceptance that Leipzig could also be powerless in stopping Diomande’s head from being turned at the tip of the campaign because the Ivory Coast international continues to go from strength to strength.
United and Chelsea are believed to have been monitoring Diomande’s progress for a while, while Liverpool are also known to have sent scouts to look at the forward in motion.
In response, Leipzig have reportedly slapped an eye-watering £80million asking price on the teen. Such a sale would represent a big profit for Leipzig, who signed the teenager from Leganes for a fee of just €20m (£17.5m).
‘Imagine people say you go to Chelsea or Real Madrid [as examples of big clubs] to do that job…you’re going to be completely satisfied and motivated to do more,’ Diomande told The Athletic when asked concerning the incessant speculation over his future.
‘I don’t give it some thought an excessive amount of because my focus is on the pitch, my job is playing football, that takes care of all the pieces.
‘However it gives me a whole lot of motivation to see people talking about me.’
Diomande has even surprised himself with the speed at which he has gone from playing high-school association football in the USA to being considered one in every of the subsequent big things on this planet game.
‘I didn’t imagine to do all the pieces so quickly like this but I even have ambition and vision to be among the finest players,’ he added.
‘All the pieces happened fast and now I’m going step-by-step.
‘I even have a brand new dream day-after-day. I’m not going to say anything crazy, but in five years I’d prefer to be among the finest.’
Prior to signing for Leganes, Diomande got here near moving to England and was even invited to coach with Chelsea, Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.
‘I used to be young so I didn’t really know what was happening,’ the Ivorian explained.
‘However it was fun going to Chelsea and Crystal Palace, and seeing players like Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze.’
For now, Diomande stays focussed on seeing out a successful season with Leipzig and repaying the religion the club showed in him when he arrived from Leganes last summer.
‘I’ll always remember this. It’s not nearly playing football. Most individuals can only see what happens on the pitch, however the club has helped me a lot with my family and my mum.
‘Young kids like me, I even have a whole lot of things that occur, but no person knows aside from the club. They did rather a lot for me so I’m grateful and all I can do is help them on the pitch.
‘It’s an enormous motivation to pay back what they put in me – €20m is an enormous risk, but it surely’s not over, we have now to maintain working hard.’
‘It’s our aim to maintain players with us for longer than simply one yr, because otherwise you don’t achieve any continuity,’ Leipzig chief Marcel Schafer told Kicker when quizzed on the growing interest in Diomande in January.
‘It’s our aim to maintain players with us for longer than simply one yr, because otherwise you don’t achieve any continuity.’
Pressed on whether Leipzig were within the ‘driving seat’ when it got here to Diomande’s future, Schafer, somewhat cryptically, replied: ‘There isn’t even anyone sitting within the passenger seat.
‘Everyone seems to be sitting within the back seat.’
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