Lille were recently knocked out of the UEFA Champions League in the round of 16 by Dortmund, 3-2 on aggregate and are currently sixth on the Ligue 1 table.
Siya sources have added that several clubs are now interested in Ribeiro Costa, and that the Brazilians are yet to respond on the situation. Their key player is focused on inspiring Masandawana in their push for trophies at the climax of the season.
"This is new interest. There are Lille representatives who have enquired about him. They have shown serious interest in Ribeiro and the team cannot ignore that. But you know there are other clubs who have shown interest before and the club is just waiting to hear from all those teams on the way forward," the insider stated.
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A second insider stated that Sundowns are already preparing for the possibility of life without the Brazilian, just in case he really does leave next season.
"They won't be waiting for next season to see if Ribeiro or Peter Shalulile or even Iqraam Rayners leave, for them to look for a new striker. No. And that's why you have players like Arthur Sales and young players from the DDC who can easily step up if any of their strikers leave at the end of the season because they have all attracted interest from different clubs (abroad)," the second source explained.
The Brazilian striker is currently the leading goalscorer, with 13 goals from 21 games played this season. He is four goals ahead of his own teammate, Rayners and favourite to pick up major individual honours at the end of the campaign.
It remains to be seen if Sundowns will hold onto Ribeiro Costa next season but they would hope to have him in their squad for the FIFA Club World Cup after the South African campaign.
