Alexandre Lacazette has the quality to succeed at Liverpool or Arsenal should the free-scoring forward move to England, his former Lyon teammate Aly Cissokho believes.
Lacazette, 23, has reportedly caught the eye of the Premier League duo after scoring 17 goals in the first half of the season in Ligue 1 to help his club into second place, behind Marseille but ahead of defending champions Paris Saint-Germain.
Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has stated his determination to keep Lacazette at the club as part of his ambition of having a home-grown team lead them back into the Champions League in their new stadium, which will open in 2016.
Cissokho, 27, who spent last season on loan at Liverpool, said he had seen Lacazette's potential first-hand during his three-year spell at Lyon between 2009 and 2012, and firmly believes the France international forward has the ability to shine in the Premier League.
The defender, now at Aston Villa, told footmercato.net: "It's great, I'm happy for him. He's a player who, when I was there, came from the reserve team to train with us, but you could see he had a future.
"He was serious in his work, and showed his determination in each session. He steadily grew in confidence, and has established himself in the team. I think he's starting to show his potential to the whole of Europe. He has quality, and is going to get better and better.
"What he is capable of doing now is very good for Lyon and France. He's a young player, and clubs like Arsenal and Liverpool have a lot of competition for places up front, and as a foreigner it's also different because you have to leave your home town and those close to you.
"It's a challenge, it's up to him to see if he's ready to take it on. We'll see what happens in the summer, but he easily has the quality to play in teams of that stature."