Manager addresses defender's drop in form as Newcastle United move to sign him

03/05/2024 17:37

Sporting Club de Portugal manager Ruben Amorim has insisted he is not too concerned about Ousmane Diomande's lack of form, as it could help keep him away from suitors such as Newcastle United.

Leonino cover comments from the Sporting boss today on the defender, who has been enduring something of a more difficult second half of the season after returning from the African Cup of Nations.

He's been one of the undisputed stars in the current Sporting side since joining from FC Midtjylland in a €7.5m deal in January last year.

The defender has gone from strength to strength since that point, establishing himself in the first team and earning plenty of admirers too, particularly in the Premier League.

Newcastle United are one of them and have been consistently linked for months, with recent reports indicating they are even getting themselves to the front of the queue.

The growing belief has been that they could win the race for his signature, with it made clear Newcastle want to beat Premier League competition to the deal.

Two weeks ago there were claims of the Magpies getting in touch to try and talk down the €80m clause, and this week it was reported a deal could be done in the region of €50-60m.

That might be something they question at the minute as Diomande is not in the best of form, but his current manager isn't too concerned with that.

"He played his first game at CAN and stayed out for a while," he said.

"When he came back, he started playing straight away and played many games in a row. Then he had Ramadan and that has an influence on the players.

"There were ups and downs there during some games and we caught a lot of big games. In terms of appreciation, I don’t know if it’s bad. It could be a good sign that he doesn’t have as much appreciation. It's always good to keep the best players on the team."

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