Jonathan David transfer update: Lille has agreed to pay a club- and Canadian-record fee of more than $35 million to acquire Canada’s newest rising star, 20-year-old forward Jonathan David, from Belgian side Gent, according to a report from TSN’s Kristian Jack.
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David burst onto the radars of some of Europe’s top clubs almost immediately upon making his first-team debut with Gent in August of 2018. He scored on his debut that day and finished the season with 14 goals (all competitions) at the age of 19. He followed his stellar debut campaign with an even better record in 2019-20: 23 goals in 40 appearances.
David was previously reported to have already agreed to contract terms with Lille, making it a virtual foregone conclusion that he would join the Ligue 1 side once the two clubs agreed a transfer fee.
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The fee of $35 million would surpass Monaco’s outlay of $30 million (the current record paid to a Belgian club) to sign midfielder Youri Tielemans from Anderlecht in 2017. Likewise, it surpasses Lille’s club-record outlay to acquire Victor Osimhen ($24 million), who officially joined Napoli for $83 million last week, just one year ago. Finally, it dwarfs the $13 million (up to $22 million with add-ons) that Bayern Munich paid to Vancouver Whitecaps and MLS for fellow Canadian international Alphonso Davies in 2018.