Lyon could sell Yoann Gourcuff

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has admitted he would let Yoann Gourcuff leave the club "if he has a good offer and wants to leave".

Aulas has previously stated that Lyon have to sell three players - ideally two in the January transfer window and one next summer - in order to help balance the books.

Anthony Reveillere, Bafetimbi Gomis and Michel Bastos all came close to leaving the club last summer, but Aulas has not ruled out Gourcuff's departure.

The attacking midfielder, who has 29 France caps, was bought for €22 million from Bordeaux in 2010 but has spent the majority of that time either injured or out of form. He is under contract until June 2014 but Aulas is considering selling him in order to help reduce the club's €28 million debt.

"Yoann is an important asset for Olympique Lyonnais. We made a huge investment to sign him when he was the best French player. For now, we can't say this investment hasn't been economically interesting", Aulas said in an interview given to Lyon Capitale.

If Lyon are to get a decent price for Gourcuff, the former AC Milan midfielder needs to return in decent form. After a good pre-season he was injured against in Troyes in only the second Ligue 1 game of the season. He has not played since, though could return for Sunday's clash against fellow high-flyers Marseille.

"He needs to win back his position in the team after his knee injury," Aulas said. "We hope he'll be in the squad for Marseille trip. If he comes back, if he has good offers and if he wants to leave, we could sell him."

Apart from Gourcuff, Aulas added that Lisandro Lopez is "indispensable" to the team, and he played down the rumours of the Argentinian forward leaving for Serie A club Fiorentina in the January transfer window.

Source: ESPN