Metz have issued a hands-off warning to the likes of Everton and Aston Villa with the Ligue 1 outfit determined to keep £27 million star Pape Matar Sarr for at least another season, as reported by L’Essentiel.
Given that Metz have seen just shy of £30 million disappear from their coffers through the unhelpful combination of covid and the collapse of Mediapro’s TV deal, you’d have been forgiven for assuming Les Grenats couldn’t wait to cash in on their most bankable asset.
According to the Daily Mail, four Premier League clubs – Everton, Aston Villa, Newcastle United and Chelsea – are queuing up to sign Sarr.
The Senegal international is valued at a staggering £27 million already, such is the impact he has made since making his senior debut in November 2020.
A belligerent ball-winner blessed with a fine passing range and underrated technical ability, former Everton and Villa ace Idrissa Gana Gueye sees a bit of himself in young Sarr.
But Metz, who finished a creditable tenth in Ligue 1 this season, are determined to stop one of the country’s brightest young talents from following in Gueye’s footsteps before he’s finished his apprenticeship at the Stade Saint-Symphorien.
“Leave him alone. Let him grow. He still has a lot of progress to make,” says Metz coach Frederic Antonetti.
President Bernard Serin struck a similarly stubborn tone when asked about Sarr’s future.
“All the clubs now want to buy him for cheaper. We are in the opposite situation. We want to keep him a little longer,” Serin says, before admitting Metz may be forced to accept an offer they simply can’t refuse.
“The wish is to keep everyone – but we do not control everything. A very high offer makes it difficult for you to convince a player to stay.”
Sarr may share more than a few similarities with Gueye but he has also been likened, rather ambitiously, to Barcelona’s former Juventus playmaker Miralam Pjanic – proof he’s more than your average deep-lying enforcer.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
