brentford Now know that it is becoming a very real race for Issa Doumbia. And Sporting aren't really hiding their intentions anymore.
The Venezia midfielder has had a huge season in Italy. The 22-year-old has scored nine goals and provided five assists in 37 appearances. He has helped Venezia gain promotion back to Serie A. So it is natural that he has made himself one of the most talked about midfielders in the country.
That rise has attracted the attention of many clubs across Europe. However, The Brentford name will continue As one of the English sides was seriously interested in the position.
The problem for them is that sporting is moving fast.
Sporting is working hard for Doumbia
according to to ballThe Portuguese side have already moved beyond simple interest and made a concrete contract offer to the player.
Now the financial details have also come out. The newspaper reports that Sporting are offering Doumbia a five-year contract worth €100,000 (£85,600) a month after tax until 2031.
Over the life of the deal, the package will exceed €6m (£5.1m). A release clause of €80 million (£68.5 million) is also expected to be included.
Sporting has been planning a midfield change for some time now. Morten Hjulmand while expecting to leave hidemasa morita His contract is about to expire and he has already made it clear that he wants to try Premier League football.
Doumbia has been identified internally as one of the main replacements.
One Bola says that Sporting is ahead of Benfica even at this stage because they are already talking directly to the player, while Benfica are still working mainly with Venezia.
This means that Brentford will have to deal with the pressure if they really want to enter the race properly rather than monitoring the situation from afar.
Brentford are still there - but Venezia wants more
Brentford continue to be mentioned as solid competition for the Portuguese clubs, and the interest fits into their general transfer strategy. But the report makes it clear that there is no rush to sell Venezia on the cheap.
While everyone in favor of the deal accepts that the transfer will cost more than €15m (£12.8m), Venezia themselves reportedly consider that figure to be much lower.
Nevertheless, A Bola also suggests that the final price may not increase more dramatically than that point, which could keep the deal realistic for Brentford if they decide to move aggressively. It is probably this balance that keeps the position open.
But the longer Brentford wait, the more difficult it may become. Sporting already have a contract offer, direct negotiations with the player and a clear plan for rebuilding their midfield.
And Venezia know they are in a strong negotiating position after promotion.
