Lille agree to sell Botman for $50million – but nobody knows to whom

French club Lille have reportedly agreed to sell their prized asset, the 21-year-old centre-back Sven Botman. The 21-year-old’s sale has reportedly been agreed for a fee of around $50million, but it’s yet unclear which will be his next club.

The Netherlands youth international spent half of his life at Ajax’s famed Academy, but he never made a debut for the first team at Johan Cruyff Arena. The Dutch champions decided to sell him after the 2019/20 season to LOSC Lille in a transfer worth around $10 million. It’s a decision they might live to regret considering the progress Botman has been making since his move to France. Interestingly, Ajax and Lille have been pitted together by the Europa League round of 32 draw.

Playing in Ligue 1 regularly has given Botman plenty of experience and much-needed confidence. As a result, his market value has rocketed and Europe’s biggest clubs have been alerted to his fine displays. Liverpool tried to sign him in January to solve their injury crisis, but have ended up with the loan transfer of Schalke’s Ozan Kabak and Preston’s Ben Davies instead. Still, they haven’t given up on the Dutchman completely and it’s widely speculated that’s in fact Liverpool who have decided to splash the cash on the strong defender.

French media giants Canal+ broke the story of Botman’s sale to “an elite club” on Sunday amid widespread talk of Lille being pressed for cash. Most French clubs are urged to sell players in order to balance their books because of the recent collapse of the Mediapro deal that left clubs from top two divisions in France bereft of broadcasting revenue. Selling a player for an estimated $40million profit would aid the club in remaining in the black.

With Liverpool seemingly out of title race in the Premier League, Jurgen Klopp may be already planning his next steps that would make his side able to reproduce the kind of form that’s seen them win Champions League and Premier League in the past two seasons. Reds’ fans might be treated to a Dutch centre-back pairing of Virgil Van Dijk and Sven Botman next term.

French reporter Simone Rovera has been told by Botman’s agent that the player isn’t thinking about any potential moves and that he’s focusing on the current season. It remains to be seen whether the reports are just a smokescreen. In any case, Botman will remain a desirable target for wealthy clubs in the coming months.