Assessment of the winter transfer window: flat calm (also) among the former LOSC
Out of around 150 former active Mastiffs, in the various world leagues (level D1 to D3), only about fifteen movements are to be reported this winter.
They join a major league
- Michael Frey is loaned by the Belgian club Antwerp to Schalke 04, current bottom of the Bundesliga. The Swiss striker has already made an assist since his arrival in Germany.
- Always difficult to know if it should be listed in the old mastiffs, even if contractually it was the case. Note that Florian Thauvinjoined Udinese (7th in Serie A).
The rest of the moves are pretty exotic
- Author of a superb World Cup at the end of the year, Sofiane Boufal could claim prestigious suitors. Like his compatriot Azzedine Ounahi who joined OM, Sofiane Boufal chose to return to the land of Moroccan exploits, and joined Al-Rayyan in Qatar.
- Yassine Benzia who had discovered Azerbaijan with LOSC in 2016, must have enjoyed the trip. Indeed, he signed with Qarabağ FK (not to be confused with a certain… Qabala FK)
- Without a club since the end of his contract at FC Metz last May, Nicolas De Previlleremains in the sector, but crosses the border, committing to FC Kaiserslautern, 4th in Bundesliga 2.
- Edgar Iewithout a club since January 2022 and a serious injury to Trabzonspor, remains in Turkey at Basaksehir.
- Finally, very little used with LOSC pros (if at all): Maxime Paul sign in La Louvière in Belgium. Abdoulaye Diaby at the Ittihad Kalba in the United Arab Emirates. Arnaud Souquet joins Luiz Araujo in MLS, but on the Chicago Fire side. As for Sebastien Dewaesthe was released by Genk, after two successive loans (Toulouse then Louvain)… towards Cyprus and AEL Limassol.
They leave the LOSC
- Leo Jardim, who arrived in July 2019 for €6m, the Brazilian goalkeeper who kept the Lille cage 30 times, is returning to Brazil as part of a permanent transfer, the amount of which is around €2m. As a reminder, he joined CR Vasco da Gama.
- Issac Lihadji will try to launch his career on the side of Sunderland AFC (in the Premiership), with only 707 minutes of play in 2 and a half seasons in Lille, he will not have managed to demonstrate all of his talent. The transfer amount is less than one million.
- Loaned without purchase option to Auxerre, Akim Zedadka joins the list of loans that we could see returning this summer (with Yusuf Yazici and Rocco Ascone if his purchase option is not exercised)
- Finally, the young Jose Bica imitates LOSC’s previous top scorer in the Youth League (Iddy Ouattara)… and will therefore never have a chance in pro. He too, because of multiple disciplinary incidents.
Ten alumni in the top 200 of Transfermarkt
At each transfer window, the famous site Transfermarkt updates the « market value » of players around the world. In February 2023, 9 former mastiffs (as well as Jonathan David) are among the 200 most “bankable” players on the football planet.
- Rafael Leao €85m (13th)
- Victor Osimhen €70m (36th)
- Jonathan David €45m (106th)
- Gabriel Magalhães €40m (126th)
- Sven Botman €38m (151st)
- Mike Maignan, Amadou Onana, Benjamin Pavard and Martin Terrier €35m (160th)
- Yves Bissouma €32m (195th)
