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Leny Yoro 'makes Lille contract decision amid Real Madrid, Man United links'

Leny Yoro 'makes Lille contract decision amid Real Madrid, Man United links'
© Reuters
Teenage defender Leny Yoro reportedly decides that he will not be extending his Lille contract amid links with the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester United.

Lille defender Leny Yoro has reportedly made a decision about his future with the French club amid links with some of Europe's most revered names.

Standing at 6ft 3in tall and already an indispensable player for the 2020-21 French champions, the 18-year-old is unsurprisingly being tipped for an incredibly bright future.

Yoro has already made 52 appearances for Les Dogues in all tournaments, including 36 outings during the current campaign, in which he has scored twice in Ligue 1 and once in Europa Conference League qualifiers.

Lille have kept an impressive 14 clean sheets in Ligue 1 with Yoro on the field, and the 2005-born youngster has also started four games in the Conference League, where Lille will face Aston Villa in this month's quarter-finals.

Last month, Yoro also made his debut for France's Under-23s in a 3-2 friendly win over Ivory Coast, and he is expected to make his nation's squad for the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympics on home soil.

Lille defender Leny Yoro in action with Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappe in February 2023© Reuters

Real Madrid, Manchester United handed major transfer boost

Chelsea and Liverpool are both thought to have been keeping tabs on Yoro this season, but the strongest interest is supposedly arriving from Real Madrid and Manchester United, who have now received significant encouragement in their respective pursuits.

According to Marca, Yoro has decided he will not be extending his Lille contract, which runs out in the summer of 2025, meaning that a sale this summer is looking increasingly likely.

With the defender able to leave for nothing next year, Les Dogues know that they will be forced to slash their mammoth €100m (£85.6m) asking price if they are to recoup a respectable fee for the youngster, who has been at the club since 2017.

News of Yoro's stance is supposedly set to see Real Madrid accelerate their pursuit of the centre-back, whose agent Jorge Mendes is in regular dialogue with Los Blancos over the latest developments.

Despite admiration from Man United, Yoro himself is believed to have his heart set on joining Real Madrid, whose head coach Carlo Ancelotti is also convinced by his potential and current skillset.

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti before the match on March 5, 2024© Reuters

How might Real Madrid's defence look next season?

Establishing a regular centre-back pairing has been a tricky task for Ancelotti in the 2023-24 campaign, which for Real has been partially overshadowed by a trio of crushing ACL injuries, two of which were for Eder Militao and David Alaba.

However, Militao has finally completed his taxing recovery programme, and after seven months with no competitive football, the Brazilian came off the bench in the final moments of Sunday's 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao.

Ancelotti fielded a pairing of Antonio Rudiger and Nacho Fernandez from the off in that game, but Militao could now force his way back in alongside the former for the upcoming Champions League quarter-final showdown with Manchester City.

Captain Nacho is only under contract until the end of the season and could depart to make way for Yoro, who will have to be patient for first-team opportunities over Alaba, Militao and Rudiger next term.

The La Liga leaders are also pursuing a move for Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies, whose agent has slammed the German champions over their handling of contract talks, and a parting of the ways this summer is seemingly inching ever closer.

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Paris Saint-Germain's Kylian Mbappe in action with Lille's Leny Yoro on December 17, 2023
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