After winning the Ligue 1 title under Christophe Galtier last season, Lille’s ranks were picked apart by clubs across the continent. One of the men to stay put was Canadian striker Jonathan David, and the club must be so grateful that this happened. David played well in the league winning campaign but it is nothing compared to his performances week-in, week-out this time around. So much so that clubs around Europe are vying for his signature, according to Matthew Scianitti.
Jonathan David In Demand
From Canada to Ligue 1 Title Winner
Paris Saint-Germain may be romping their way towards yet another Ligue 1 title, but it is Jonathan David that leads the scoring charts. The New York-born forward has helped dig Lille out of an early-season hole. They began very poorly but have started to turn it around, not to mention that they have performed hery well in the Champions League to date.
David and Wissam Ben-Yedder of Monaco lead the way with 12 goals each in the league and David has been out in front for a while now. After all, Burak Yilmaz is second to the Canadian with six in all competitions, the impact of David has been meteoric for Jocelyn Gourvennec’s side.
Jonathan David just casually topping the Ligue 1 scoring charts 🇨🇦 #CanMNT pic.twitter.com/rHtXXmCBX4
— Chris Smith (@Chris_SXI) November 19, 2021
Alongside Champions League winning Alphonso Davies, David has been at the fore for the Canadian national team and their push to qualify for the Qatar World Cup. In the CONCACAF standings, they currently lead the way ahead of the USMNT and Mexico. The sums of money being rumoured around him are truly mouth-watering. After scoring 13 times in the title-winning season, David already sitting on 12 this term is evidence of his astounding progression.
Who Will Capture the Signature of Jonathan David?
Lille have shown in the past that they’re willing to sell to anyone for the right price. Nicolas Pepe joined Arsenal in the same window that Napoli snapped up Victor Osimhen, two moves that were both over £70 million each. Since then, as previously mentioned, a number of players moved on after the title win. Jonathan Ikone has recently joined Fiorentina whilst in the summer; Mike Maignan signed for AC Milan and Leicester City acquired midfielder Boubakary Soumare.
It is becoming increasingly more likely that David will join this ever-growing list. French teams were hit massively by the whole TV rights debacle at the start of the season and so they are playing catch-up on the money front.
Arsenal and West Ham United are two Premier League clubs rumoured to be at the fore of the race for David. Both require a striker with Pierre -Emerick Aubameyang out of favour at the former and Michail Antonio as the only senior player in that position for the latter. Elsewhere, Juventus are said to be keen, even more so following the ACL injury to keyman Federico Chiesa.
It wouldn’t be surprising to know that PSG are interested given the talent vacuum they have at their disposal in Ligue 1. Maybe David could succeed Robert Lewandowski at Bayern Munich, even. In this window and going forward to the summer, David is alongside Dusan Vlahovic and Erling Haaland as the elite players in the shop window.
There are so many teams who are keeping tabs on David and whilst he can maybe aim his sights higher than Arsenal and West Ham, some of Europe’s elite are certainly keen on him.
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