Rennes president updates on club’s pursuit of Amiens striker

Rennes president Nicolas Holveck has confirmed that his team are interested in signing Serhou Guirassy, but are unlikely to meet the current asking price set by Amiens.

Guirassy made the move to Amiens from Koln on loan in January 2019 and the club took the option to secure his permanent signature for £5m last summer.

In the recent campaign, the 25-year-old was the leading performer for Amiens with nine league goals, but his efforts were insufficient to keep the club in Ligue 1 when the season was curtailed after 28 games due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Over the past few months, Guirassy has been regularly linked with a move away from the French outfit and it had been suggested that a fee of around £10m could be sufficient to prise him away from the club.

However, that does not appear the case and Les Licornes are holding out for at least £18.2m (€20m) in order to sanction the sale of the former France youth international.

In a recent interview with L’Equipe (h/t Inside Futbol), Holveck revealed that Rennes are interested in the striker, and the club had failed with a bid worth £10.9m (€12m) for his services last month.

He added that they are unlikely to come up with a renewed approach unless Amiens lower their price tag and are already looking at alternative options to bolster their frontline ahead of next season.

“Yes, it is more complicated than that because Amiens remain on their position, so we are looking at alternative solutions,” He told.

“For the moment, it is complicated and depending on what Amiens ask for and whether it is within our means.

“[We have not returned with another offer after the €12m bid in June] because Amiens have not budged from their demand of [€20m].”

Guirassy was on the radar of West Ham United during the January transfer window, but he opted to stay put with Amiens for the season to help them in their relegation battle.

It was anticipated that he would be permitted to leave the club after their relegation to Ligue 2 was confirmed, but it appears that they are prepared to wait for better proposals on the table.

In an interview with But! Football Club, club president Bernard Joannin confirmed that both West Ham and Crystal Palace are in the running to sign Guirassy and it remains to be seen whether the Premier League duo will make offers close to the asking price.

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