Monaco issue hands-off warning to Arsenal and Tottenham over winger Thomas Lemar
French champions will not allow Lemar to follow Bernardo Silva and Tiemoue Bakayoko out of the Principality this summer
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MONACO have scuppered Arsenal and Tottenham summer plans by insisting Thomas Lemar is not sale.
The Independent report the Gunners had a £31million bid for the French international rejected this week.
There was surprise in the Principality about how low the Premier League side’s opening gambit was for the star who has also been watched by Barcelona.
With that low bid in mind, it looks like the French champions don’t believe Arsenal’s interest is serious enough for consideration for one their star performers last term.
North London rivals Tottenham have also been monitoring the winger’s situation, but have now moved on to other targets after learning Lemar will remain at Monaco.
Lemar, 21, was born in Guadeloupe and moved to France to join Caen in 2010.
The youngster has been on the Gunners radar since he was fast-tracked into the French Under-17 squad.
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Monaco snapped up Lemar for £3m in 2015 following his stand-out performances at the Toulon tournament.
Monaco have already lost Bernardo Silva and Tiemoue Bakayoko to the Premier League this summer.
And with the futures of Kylian Mbappe, Benjamin Mendy and Fabinho still up in the air, the champions will want to hold on to some of their stars to defend the Ligue 1 title and perform in Europe next season.
Monaco have bagged Anderlecht star Youri Tielemens and will continue their policy of signing young players and selling them on to Europe's elite for a massive profit.
And regardless of the Gunners offer, Monaco chiefs feel they can sell Lemar for over £70m with another good season in France under his belt.
