Audio By Carbonatix
Al Ain CEO Carlo Nohra says the UAE Pro-League leaders are in the "driving seat" to retain the services of star striker Asamoah Gyan despite a reported bid from an unnamed Qatari club on Monday.
The Ghanaian striker, who is on loan at Al Ain from Sunderland, has netted 16 goals in all competitions and his good form has attracted plenty of interest.
The manager of Gyan's parent club Sunderland, Martin O'Neill, is understood to be keen to bring him back to England when his loan expires, while the Black Cats also revealed they'd received a bid on Monday from an unspecified Qatari club.
Sunderland also revealed last week that "another club out there in the UAE looking at his services".
However, Nohra told Sport360 on Monday that Al Ain were in a good position to secure his long-term future given they have an option in his contract to sign him permanently for an additional €3.5 million.
"Everyone is declaring their interest in Gyan, and rightly so he is performing very well and everyone should be interested," Nohra said. "But we are very comfortable with our legal situation in this.
"We have a contract in place which has certain provisions for a permanent transfer so we are in no rush to make the decision now.
"We won't be rushed into it as a knee jerk reaction to what the market may be doing. We are in the driving seat and we will remain in that position until the clauses in the deal expire."
Nohra added: "The player himself has a role in this and so do Sunderland. The agreement that binds the three of us gives Al Ain priority, but it also gives the player the right to come out and say what he wants as well.
"We don't have to do anything before (the end of the season) and equally nothing can happen before then."
Gyan recently admitted he was happy at Al Ain, particularly following the welcome the club's fans gave him upon his return to UAE after the 2012 African Cup of Nations where he missed a vital penalty for Ghana. Nohra added he hoped Gyan was happy to stay with the club.
"We have had a conversation with Asamoah. He has declared he is happy at the club but more importantly his actions have spoken louder than any words," Nohra said.
"Coming back from the African Cup of Nations at his own cost and at great expense as well in time to play for the club speak volumes."
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Tags:
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Latest Stories
-
China pushes back against US on Iran and Cuba in UN speech
14 minutes -
OpenAI, Anthropic CEOs called to appear at Australian AI probe
35 minutes -
T-bills auction: Government exceeds target marginally; yield on 91-day bill remains unchanged
3 hours -
GPL 2026/27: 10-man Aduana hand Kotoko defeat in Kumasi
4 hours -
GPL 2026/27: Medeama ease past Basake Holy Stars
4 hours -
Appiah Adomako writes: Why DVLA must stop treating every expired licence holder as delinquent
4 hours -
Localization must transfer decision-making power, not just project responsibilities
4 hours -
Modernising Ghana’s traditional markets through the 24-Hour Economy markets initiative
4 hours -
New economy will boost local production and create jobs – Finance Minister
5 hours -
Germany still winless under Klopp after loss to Greece
5 hours -
Ronaldo on bench as Portugal beat Norway
5 hours -
Republic of Ireland defeat Israel in Debrecen
5 hours -
Real-Time VAT on cross-border digital services – not a new tax and does not violate double taxation principle
5 hours -
Digitalisation, AI key to Ghana’s tourism transformation – GHATOF
6 hours -
Stronger GTA-private sector partnership needed to grow tourism – GHATOF
6 hours