Tom Olver
Published February 18, 2026 5:14pm
Updated February 18, 2026 5:25pm
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Manchester United and Chelsea have been keeping close tabs on Yan Diomande (Picture: Getty)
RB Leipzig have reportedly set their asking price for teenage sensation Yan Diomande amid strong interest from the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool.
Diomande has hit the ground running having joined Leipzig from Leganes last summer, notching eight goals and four assists in his first 21 appearances in the Bundesliga.
The 19-year-old winger has quickly established himself as one of the most exciting attacking talents in Germany and his barnstorming form has begun to attract the attentions of many of Europe’s elite sides.
Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-German have both been credited with a strong interest in Diomande in recent weeks. The Premier League has also been mooted as a possible destination for the youngster, with Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool all heavily linked.
Leipzig’s hierarchy were adamant that Diomande was not for sale in the January transfer window, with the club chiefs determined not to lose any key players during their fight for Champions League qualification.
However, there is a growing acceptance that Leipzig may be powerless in preventing Diomande’s head from being turned at the end of the season as the Ivory Coast international continues to go from strength to strength.
According to talkSPORT, United and Chelsea have both been monitoring Diomande’s progress over recent months, while Liverpool sent scouts to watch the forward in action during Leipzig’s 2-2 draw with Wolfsburg on Sunday.
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The teenager is enjoying a phenomenal debut season in the Bundesliga (Picture: Getty)
Leipzig are demanding a fee of £80m for their prized possession (Picture: Getty)
The reigning Premier League champions are said to have identified Diomande as a long-term replacement for Mohamed Salah, who has set his sights on a switch to the Saudi Pro League this summer.
The report claims that, in response, Leipzig have slapped an £80million asking price on their prized possession – but this figure could drop should Ole Werner’s men fail to book a spot in next season’s Champions League.
Such a sale would represent a significant profit for Leipzig, who signed the teen for a fee of just €20m (£17.5m) only seven months ago.
‘It is our aim to keep players with us for longer than just one year, because otherwise you don’t achieve any continuity,’ Leipzig chief Marcel Schafer told Kicker when quizzed on the growing interest in Diomande in January.
‘It is our aim to keep players with us for longer than just one year, because otherwise you don’t achieve any continuity.’
Diomande represented the Ivory Coast at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Picture: Getty)
Pressed on whether Leipzig were in the ‘driving seat’ when it came to Diomande’s future, Schafer replied: ‘There isn’t even anyone sitting in the passenger seat.
‘Everyone is sitting in the back seat.’
During a TikTok live with his followers last month, Diomande appeared to give Liverpool the edge in the race for his signature as he revealed that he had been a fan of the Merseyside giants since childhood.
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‘I want to play at Anfield and I want to play for Liverpool. I’m a big fan of Liverpool,’ Diomande said.
‘I’m a big fan of Liverpool because my father’s dream is to see me play at Anfield. So that’s my dream.
‘You know, to fulfil my father’s dream is a dream for me too.’
Diomande’s current contract with Leipzig runs through to June 2030.
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