Report: Arsenal, Chelsea facing other suitors for Lille's Sofiane Boufal

London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea are reportedly facing Spanish competition for the services of Lille standout Sofiane Boufal.

While he's slated to make the Premier League switch to one of the two London giants, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid have thrown their hats into the ring for Les Dogues' 11-goal man, according to Ed Aarons of the Guardian.

Lille has already confirmed that the 22-year-old Paris-born Moroccan international is slated to leave the Stade Pierre-Mauroy this summer, and the club is demanding a reported fee of €25 million.

Aarons contends that of all the Premier League teams interested in Boufal, only the London pair have agreed to meet Lille's valuation.

"We did have a meeting with the leadership of FC Barcelona in the last few weeks. There is an interest," Boufal's agent, Yvan Le Mee, told LE10 Sport, according to the Guardian.

"Now the reflection is whether Sofiane Boufal will go to Barcelona to compete with MSN (Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Neymar), or should he go to a club where he is going start matches and express his exceptional talent."

Agents making claims of the boastful variety isn't a new phenomenon. To increase the value and demand for their clients, they will often make statements to gauge the interest of other parties.

Of all the clubs reportedly interested in Boufal, Le Mee only mentioned Barcelona, though his comments that follow hint at a possible move to Paris Saint-Germain, which is thought to be considering replacing Laurent Blanc with former Sevilla boss Unai Emery, or Chelsea, which will be managed by Antonio Conte once his Italy tenure ends.

"We have also initiated discussions with three other clubs that interest us, but they either have or will change their coach or the coach is in charge of a national team at the Euros. In England, there is interest, but the English market is just beginning. A transfer of €20 million-€25 million is not resolved in two weeks, of course."