Toulouse's Etienne Capoue announces desire to leave the club

Aug 4, 2012 5:46:00 PM

The player has revealed his intention to quit the French side and move to a bigger club, amid interest from a number of Europe's leading clubs including Inter and Barcelona

Toulouse midfielder Etienne Capoue has announced that he wishes to leave the club, with the player hopeful of securing a move to one of Europe's elite.

The 24-year-old has been at Stadium Municipal since 2005, and since making his Ligue 1 debut in December 2007, has clocked up over 150 first-team appearances since then.

A member of Goal.com's Ligue 1 Team of the Year, Capoue has expressed his wish to be able to play in the Champions League, citing the situation of former-team-mate Daniel Congre, who quit Le Tefece to join Montpellier in June.

"Like Daniel Congre, I want to play in the Champions League to face the best teams in the continent. Toulouse cannot offer me that this season," the 24-year-old told L'Equipe.

"We missed out on qualification to Europe at the end of the season, and yes, this has made me want to leave.

"It’s not that I’m not happy at Toulouse, but I want to move on to progress, and integrate as quickly as possible into the France team.”

The club's president Olivier Sadran meanwhile, has insisted that no offer has been made for his player, amid interest from Arsenal, Inter, Sevilla and Barcelona.

"If there is an offer that seems enough to replace him and to sustain the club, he can leave. But I have not had any offers," Sadran said.

Toulouse begin their Ligue 1 campaign against Montpellier on Friday. Kick-off is at 20:45 CET.

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