Northampton coach Dorian West admitted the speculation surrounding Saints star Louis Picamoles is ‘a little bit off-putting’ but insists the talismanic back-rower is still their player.
It was widely reported this week that he'd signed a pre-contract agreement to rejoin Montpellier after France's tour of South Africa this summer.
According to the Top 14 club's owner Mohed Altrad: "We (Montpellier) have signed what we call a pre-contract so Louis Picamoles should join us after France's summer tour."
But West, speaking to the Northampton Chronicle, said: “It (Altrad’s comment) is obviously a little bit off-putting.
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“Louis is a big part of our squad, someone who has played really well for us this year and someone we really enjoy having in our team.
“He’s our player.
“He signed a three-year contract with us, still has two years left to run on that and I don’t see why anything changes in that situation.”
