Lyon wonder-kid Houssem Aouar could have paved the way for a move to Premier League giants Liverpool by starring at the U21 European Championships.
All eyes were on Houssem Aouar ahead of the U21 European Championships this summer.
Likened to Andres Iniesta and called ‘incredible’ by Pep Guardiola, Lyon’s 20-year-old wonder-kid looked ready to star on a continental stage as France aimed to follow up last summer’s World Cup success by confirming that their next generation is a golden one too.
And with Le10 Sport claiming that Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp would love to bring Aouar to Anfield, you can imagine that plenty of scouts would be flocking to Italy to watch the rising star of Ligue 1 football in the flesh.
But they, like almost every single fan, pundit and neutral, would have been left rather deflated.
France might have raced into the semi-finals but Aouar failed to make any sort of an impression in any of his four appearances at the Euros. And he was nothing more than a peripheral figure as the French were battered 4-1 by Spain in the last four.
Perhaps the expectations were too high. Aouar made 47 appearances for Lyon in 2018/19, meaning the youngster could be forgiven for feeling exhausted by the time the tournament rolled around.
But that has not stopped the criticism from mounting.
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