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Time to report another rumor: Villarreal are allegedly interested in Alassane Pléa. He currently plays for Nice in Ligue Un, can play both as a winger and a striker. Pléa holds dual Malian and French nationality; he's been a French youth international.
The interest seems likely, yes (West Ham are apparently interested as well), but doing a deal might be difficult. Pléa is under contract at Nice until 2019 and his release clause is apparently €40m. No way we would pay anywhere close to that--I suspect €8m plus variables would be as high as we would go, maybe?
Also, Pléa was out from late September to mid-February last year with a ruptured cruciate ligament. He came back strong and played regularly after that, though. He scored 6 goals in 19 appearances for Nice, which is not bad considering the general defensive focus of the French league these days.
So: is the interest likely? Yes. Is anything likely to happen? Not unless the €40m release clause is a smokescreen and Nice are happy to let him go for something more like €8-10m.