Scout Report: Boubakary Soumare

In need of a young, exposing box-to-box midfielder? Look no further than Lille’s 21-year-old French midfielder Boubakary Soumare.

Soumare, who has been with Lille since 2017 after he was signed form PSG after coming through their academy, is a central player who has already drawn comparisons to the likes of Paul Pogba and Thomas Partey. Soumare revels in his ability to carry the ball through an oppositions midfield and make the pass to set up attackers, defensively, he is a presence and a nuisance to get past. At 6’2, he is a player who, unless up nest to, plays as though he is a lot smaller when carrying the ball but uses his size to an advantage when defending.

This season, Soumare averages 40.3 passes with an accuracy 86.7% per 90, showing his involvement in midfield play is huge and his contribution on bringing players forward is very important. Defensively he averages 1.2 tackles and 1.2 interceptions per 90, though this is not as much as other box-to-box midfielders, it shows the ability is there and at 21 this can always be improved as he gets better.

Soumare is a player who has been linked with a lot of clubs for a fair while, his PSG pedigree adds the belief that he could easily handle a big stage. In the past he has been linked with the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool, but the current strongest links are to Athletico Madrid, who are looking for a replacement for Thomas Partey, Manchester United, who are after Matic’s long term replacement and AC Milan.

With Ligue 1 currently going through a financial crisis due the corona virus pandemic, Soumare is a player who could be available at a cut price and definitely a player who could be on the move very soon.