Thomas Lemar’s father, Edwige, is reportedly standing in the way of the winger’s potential move to Arsenal.

According to GFFN, Lemar’s father wants him to stay at Monaco and even sign a contract extension so that the 21-year-old has the best possible chance to get picked for France’s national squad for the World Cup in 2018.

The rumour is similar to one that was circulating earlier in the month, which suggested that Edwige wanted his son to ‘reject’ Arsenal. So, there’s a possibility that this story could just be getting rehashed.

Despite his age, Lemar, who is supposedly pushing for a move to Arsenal, already has five caps for France’s senior team and even played a full 90 minutes during Les Bleus’ international friendly against England on 13 June. Therefore, he already appears to be part of Didier Deschamps’s plans.

story trackerArsenal have allegedly returned to Monaco with a £40m bid for the winger after other offers of £31m and then apparently £35m were knocked back. However, they’re said to be willing to go up to £50m

Would Arsene Wenger really cough up £50m – more than Mesut Ozil – for a player that he planned to keep on the bench for most of the season?