Emmanuel Adebayor has hit out at Lyon after the Ligue 1 club pulled the pin on a deal to sign him last week.
Free agent Adebayor arrived in France from his native Togo expecting to complete a medical and sign for Lyon but, after meeting with manager Bruno Genesio, the deal fell through.
Lyon cited Adebayor’s participation in the Africa Cup of Nations with Togo and his ineligibility for the Champions League as mitigating factors in their decision not to go through with the deal but the 32-year-old striker was unimpressed with that version of events.
“That’s nonsense. They came to me after we had qualified [for the Africa Cup of Nations],” Adebayor told L’Equipe. “They knew I was going to play.
If they start looking for such excuses, they will kill themselves. I’m the captain of my country, so how could I not go? What if a Frenchman refused to play in the Euros?”
Adebayor spent the second half of last season with Crystal Palace in the Premier League but Alan Pardew opted not to retain his services this season. He felt that playing in a struggling team did not suit his style of play.
“I’ve been playing at the highest level for 15 years and I have worked with some of the best coaches in the world – Arsene Wenger, Jose Mourinho, Didier Deschamps, Roberto Mancini,” added the forward.
“He [Genesio] asked me why it didn’t work at Crystal Palace. I told him that I’ve always played for teams aiming for the English title or a European title.
It’s the first time I’ve been in a team battling relegation and the play didn’t suit me.”
Lyon are 13.00 to win the Ligue 1 title this season while they are 1.60 to win their next game at home to Montpellier.
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