World Cup Tax Watch
La Republica have decided we're interested in Azzedine Ounahi, claiming that Angers are willing to listen to offers around €35m...no, wait, I got that wrong: Angers have said that €35m is the buy-in for the auction they're hoping starts
The best way to look at it is that Angers aren't in full pisstake mode like Fiorentina are with them now expecting £40m+ for Amrabat when he was reportedly available for £20-25m last January due to them already looking doomed in Ligue 1, which especially sticks out given Ounahi is contracted until 2026 after signing a new contract last August (that's August 2022, for anyone still affected with New Year Brain)
However, he's yet another box-to-box midfielder to add to the pile. A more dynamic one than Hojbjerg or Bissouma, and also one who doesn't become a passenger when we don't have the ball like Ndombele routinely did, no question about that - but hardly the creative player we need
And this is where it gets somewhat annoying: he ticks so many boxes as he could drive us up the pitch in a Dembele-like manner that we've been crying out for since the 2017-18 season when Moose's legs started to go and could rouse the crowd every time he pushes forward, yet at the same time we're also crying out for somebody who can make defence-splitting passes and he's not it
That being said, if 352 is back on the menu, a midfield three containing both Ounahi and Bentancur could have the ball going in this direction which people call "forwards"