Sunderland and Crystal Palace deadline day transfer target Malick Fofana profiled

Sunderland and Crystal Palace are reportedly involved in a transfer deadline day battle to sign Lyon’s highly-rated winger Malick Fofana.

The 21-year-old has impressed throughout his time with the Ligue 1 club and has fought his way into the Belgium senior squad alongside some of the biggest names in European football over the last two years. Talk over his future with Lyon has ramped up in recent weeks as the summer transfer window rapidly approached and there have been links with clubs in the Premier League and across Europe.

But as the clock ticks down towards tonight’s 11pm deadline and we await news over Fofana’s next destination, we take a look at the highly-rated winger.

What sort of player is Malick Fofana?

The young winger has captured interest from several clubs across Europe in recent seasons and was strongly linked with a move to Arsenal earlier this month after making an impressive start to the current season. It is no surprise to see such high level interest with The Scouting App describing him as ‘great dribbling ability’ and ‘wicked acceleration’ when driving with the ball. They also suggest the winger is capable of ‘repeating efforts at very high intensity’ and state they ‘must highlight the personality, magic and leadership of such a young player’.

What has been said about Malick Fofana?

There was a little bit of a warning handed out to the winger last season when Lyon coach Paulo Fonseca revealed he had been left underwhelmed by some of the winger’s performances during the early months of the campaign. Speaking after Fofana was named as a substitute for a Europa League win against RB Salzburg, he said: “I expect more [from Fofana], yes. I think he can do more and I spoke to him about it. He must understand that this is an important season for him and that his time is now.”

Where else has Malick Fofana played during his career?

The 21-year-old kicked off his career within the youth ranks of Belgian side KAA Gent. After scoring four goals in 13 appearances, he was fast-tracked into their senior set-up and scored five goals and provided ten assists in 64 appearances in all competitions to attract interest from a number of clubs. However, it was Lyon that won the race for his services when he completed a £15m move to the Ligue 1 club in January 2024 and he has gone on to provide 27 goal contributions in 84 appearances during his time at the Groupama Stadium.

Has Malick Fofana played at international level?

Yes, Fofana progressed through the youth ranks with Belgium and earned nine Under-21 caps before making his senior debut as a late substitute in a 2-2 draw in a Nations League meeting with Italy in October 2024. Since then, he has made a further four appearances at senior level, scoring his first goal in a 6-0 hammering of Liechtenstein in September last year.

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