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The time is right to leave! Arsenal & Saints on alert as Clement Grenier admits exit wish
ARSENAL and Southampton are on alert after Clement Grenier admitted he was interested in a move away from Lyon despite turning down a move to Newcastle this summer.
Grenier has been unclear about his intentions this summer but has now revealed that he feels the time is right to move on.
He told France Football: "I asked Lyon at the end of last season, even before I knew whether or not Remi Garde was staying, that if I had the opportunity to go to a club that would enable me to progress further.
"But I did not say: 'I absolutely want to leave Lyon.' Far from it. I think it might be the right moment... I think I need to discover something else..."
Arsenal seem unlikely to be interested in yet another attacking midfielder and it remains to be seen whether Grenier considers Southampton a significant enough step up.
And the 23-year-old has also reiterated it won't be the end of the world if he remains in Lyon.
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I think it might be the right moment... I think I need to discover something else...
He added: "I am very proud to be at Lyon, a big European club. I feel very good here and I am under contract.
"I will be a lifetime supporter of Lyon. It is my club, my life, my town. If I leave, I will be very emotional. It was my whole youth, my whole career...
"At Lyon, I learnt everything: football but also about life. When I arrived, I was just a kid. Now, I am a man. They opened this door for me to this house where I automatically felt good.
"And if I stay, I will also be the happiest in the world."
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