Younis Mahmoud to Lens and other goodies…..
By: Jay | November 15th, 2007
As oil prices near record highs, and France’s public railways remain waylaid by striking workers whilst Pakistan’s democracy teeters on the brink of disaster, its nice to know that the holiday season beckons and always seems to bring with it a bit of hope for our troubled planet no matter how short lived that may be. The holidays are also the time when European clubs finish their Christmas wish lists and hope for the best as the transfer window opens a path to renewed hope.
At La Gaillette Lens president Gervais Martel knows he has much work to do in order to get the blood and gold back on the winning track after a less than stellar summer which saw the likes of Seydou Keita, Charles Itandje and Daniel Cousin depart along with the disasterous swaps of Olivier Thomert and Jussie, not to mention the sensless loan of Issam Jemma to Caen.
Indeed, the Lens president has a tall mountain to climb after the loss of such talent. On the positive side it seems that recent news around La Gaillette seems to indicate that the club is moving in the right direction in terms of acquiring the necessary talent to get back on track.
First, their is word of a strong possibility that the Lensois may be close to acquiring the impressive talents of Iraq’s national captain Younis Mahmoud. Yes, the same Mahmoud that won most valuable player honors in the last Asian Cup as he led the Iraqis to glory.
According to the French publication But! Transferts, the 24 year old forward has been contacted by Lille and Marseille but it is Lens that have the inside track and best chance to land the rising star.
Lens has also contacted Cameroon captain Rigobert Song. The former Lensois skipper has been starring for Galatasaray of the Turkish league for a few years and seems ready for a switch back to Ligue 1.
Furthermore, coach Jean-Pierre Papin has submitted several names of particular interest for Martel’s review. The Christmas list includes, Nigerian striker Joseph Akpala currently playing in the Belgian Jupiler league, Eric Mouloungui of Strasbourg, Yoan Gourcuff of Caen and Guillaume Hoarau of Le Harve among others. Moreover, Moroccan international Badr el-kaddouri currently of Dynamo Kiev is another possibility. If only a couple of these players don the blood and gold it should be a great boost to a club sorley lacking in talent. Happy holidays………
Category: Team News
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I’m heard of Mahmoud. He’s got a great strike rate. Granted, that’s in the Middle East, but he’s highly rated throughout all of Asia, and he’s surely a better bet than many other options.
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Mahmoud is a great player. I covered the Asian Cup semis and final for another website, and he had an incredible tournament, though I can’t say much about his other play. France would be a huge step up for him, but if any domestic player in the Middle East can make that jump, Mahmoud’s a good bet. It would be great for Iraq, too, to have a player in a big league to follow.
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