Marseille president: 'We can't afford to keep Andre Ayew'

Marseille president Vincent Labrune has admitted that the club cannot afford to keep hold of striker Andre Ayew.

The 25-year-old has been a key player for the Ligue 1 side for the past five seasons, but he has been heavily linked with a move away from the club this summer.

"We can't keep Ayew," The Mirror quotes Labrune as saying. "He is a very important player for OM but we can't offer him the kind of money English clubs can offer.

"The French financial system is complicated and we can't offer him an equivalent salary to what he can earn in England. And equally, we can't ask Ayew, who we love and is an icon of our team, to accept a lower salary.

"That makes no sense so unfortunately he is going to quit the club and we hope he has the great career that he deserves in England or somewhere else."

Ayew has scored nine league goals for Marseille this season.