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Gaetan Laborde is planning to stay at Montpellier until the summer despite interest from Premier League pair West Ham United and Newcastle, the striker’s agent told Explica.
Just three weeks ago, Christophe Hutteau admitted to L’Equipe that he and his client would be willing to listen to offers during the January transfer window.
West Ham and Newcastle had both shown interest in striking an £11 million deal for the 26-year-old Laborde; a penalty-box predator who has been one of the main beneficiaries of Montpellier’s impressive transformation from iron-willed pragmatists into free-flowing purists in recent months.
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Laborde has produced six goals and five assists in 17 matches across 2020/21.
But, with Michel Der Zakarian’s team hoping to qualify for the Champions League after a nine-year absence, Laborde has no plans to walk away in the winter.
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“Gaetan’s first wish is to stay until the end of the season. This is the career plan we had set with (Montpellier) president Laurent Nicollin,” Hutteau explained.
“There is no intention of leaving this winter. If he stays, it will be anything but a disaster because he feels good in this club, where he continues to progress, where he takes pleasure.”
Hutteau admitted that Montpellier may still decide to cash in, with clubs across France hit hard by the COVID pandemic and the collapse of a billion-dollar TV deal.
There is still a glimmer of hope for West Ham and Newcastle. But that’s all it is at this stage; a glimmer.
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