The club have had a bid rejected by Nice for Alassane Plea. The Ligue One side have reportedly set an asking price of £27m for the 25-year-old.
It’s s a steep price tag for a couple of reasons. Firstly, although the forward hit 21 goals last season, it was the first campaign where he had become a prolific finisher.
Plea had scored 14 in the 16/17 season, and just six in the season before at Nice. Secondly, considering the limited funds available, you have to question whether it would be wise to spend so much on one player while there are other areas of the pitch that also need to be strengthened.
Of course, you could say that to get a quality striker we need to spend big. I am certainly not against doing that. The possible departure of Aleksandar Mitrovic to Fulham would certainly free up the funds required to make a move for Plea.
I would still not look to go all the way to match Nice’s asking price though. We would be breaking our transfer record based on one or two good seasons in Ligue One. I trust in Rafa to make the right call here, but what do you think? Let me know in the poll.