Villarreal’s Alfred N’Diaye has been linked with a move to Fulham according to a report from Spanish publication Don Balon.
N’Diaye had been a big summer signing for Villarreal and was expected to make a real impact this season but things haven’t worked out that way. The man who signed him, Marcellino, was sacked just a few weeks after bringing him in and the new head coach Fran Escriba isn’t a fan of the player. This means his time on the pitch has been limited and he’s only ended up making five appearances so far this season.
And when N’Diaye has been on the pitch he has underperformed, most notably in the Champions League qualifiers when they lost to Monaco over two legs, sending them out of the competition before it got going properly. And with Escriba not really seeing him burst into his first team plans anytime soon, he is willing to let him go in the upcoming January transfer window.
And N’Diaye’s representatives believe he would be best off he returned to England, where he once played for Sunderaland, so they have been offering his availability to Fulham. The Cottagers’ coaching staff are believed to be impressed with the videos they have been shown of him when he played for Real Betis.
And they will be thankful that Villarreal have given up any hope that they will be recouping all of the £6.2m they spent on him in the summer, though they may only let him go out on loan with an option to buy in this window.
