Lyon President Reveals Nabil Fekir's 'Dream Club' After Collapse of Liverpool Transfer

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has revealed that Liverpool are the 'dream club' of in-demand midfielder Nabil Fekir - but hinted that the much-anticipated move may not come off after a deal collapsed prior to the World Cup.

The transfer became something of a saga, with the end coming when Lyon issued a statement to deny that any agreement will be made with Liverpool. Additionally, it emerged last week that Liverpool pulled the plug on the move after being alerted to the availability of Stoke winger Xherdan Shaqiri.

The Lyon president now admits that Fekir was given the chance to join his 'dream club', even though manager Bruno Génésio wishes to keep him at the Ligue 1 club.

“I think that Nabil will be at OL next season," Aulas said, speaking to RMC Sport. "I have almost a father-son relationship with my players, I gave him the chance to go to Liverpool because it was his dream club.

"I did that too with [Corentin] Tolisso and [Samuel] Umtiti. He is our captain and it is the coach's wish to keep him."

Meanwhile, another Lyon star being touted for a move to the Premier League this summer is 21-year-old Tanguy Ndombele, who is a target for Chelsea. The young central midfielder has been linked with a move to London as PSG line up a move for France international N'Golo Kanté.

Discussing the rumours with RMC Sport, Aulas said: "We have not had any offers for him. While other clubs are interested, he will be with us next year in the middle. We must not let our best players leave."

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Fekir is currently with France's World Cup squad in Russia as they prepare for their semi-final tie against Belgium on Tuesday.