Southampton open talks with Barcelona over January loan swoop for ex-Valencia striker Paco Alcacer
Mauricio Pellegrino's Saints struggling to convince Spaniard to come to the Premier League after French Ligue 1 side Lille declare their interest
SOUTHAMPTON are set for a tug-of-war with Lille for Barcelona star Paco Alcacer.
The Saints have already held talks with the La Liga giants about bringing in the forward on loan in January.
SunSport reported earlier this month that the Premier League club wanted Alcacer, but the ex-Valencia man is still not totally convinced of a move to the South Coast.
And that has sparked interest from French side Lille, according to the Mirror.
Barca paid Valencia £30m for 24-year-old in the summer of 2016.
But they are ready to listen to offers for the Spain international, who scored only six times last season.
Southampton boss Mauricio Pellegrino is desperate to bolster his strikeforce after seeing Saints fail to net in EIGHT of their last ten home games.
Pellegrino’s men have scored just nine times this season and are determined to bolster their forward line.
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Despite his troubles at the Nou Camp, Alcacer has a fine goalscoring record throughout his career.
After hitting 42 in 64 matches for Valencia’s second-string after his breakthrough from the youth side he was promoted to the senior set-up.
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He repaid that faith with 30 goals in 93 games before earning his big move to Barca.
The star has also notched six times in 13 matches for his country.
Barca are ready to allow him, Arda Turan and Thomas Vermaelen exit in order to free up funds and space in their squad.
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Southampton spent big in January to sign Italian international Manolo Gabbiadini from Napoli.
But after six goals in his first four matches he has only found the net three times since.
He did, however, appear back to his best as he bagged two in the draw with Newcastle on Sunday.
