Cardiff City boss Sabri Lamouchi is "1,000 per cent" convinced star striker Sory Kaba wants to stay in the Welsh capital next season.
The 28-year-old has been at the heart of Cardiff's survival push since arriving on loan from Danish side Midtjylland in January, netting an impressive seven goals in 13 outings.
His latest effort in the impressive win over Watford on Wednesday night was arguably his best yet - a stunning overhead kick that many have already labelled as a goal of the season contender.
Kaba himself said after the game at Vicarage Road that he was enjoying being in south Wales, and Lamouchi admits Cardiff would be interested in retaining his services beyond the end of the current campaign, although the logistics of a move already seem uncertain.
"He will play in the UK next season," Lamouchi said. "I don't know if it will be in Cardiff or somewhere else. We can be honest. Kaba is doing absolutely everything to touch his dream.
"We will try to keep him. We will try to do our best. But it's not the time to think about that.
"He came to help us. To save the club. He can't do more than that. He deserves to be in the UK next season, and if we can find the right way to sign him and to keep him.
"He's very happy here. We are of course very happy with him as well."
The Frenchman, whose own contract with the club is up at the end of the season, is also facing something of an uncertain future, and has previously declined to entertain talk over potentially staying in the capital until the conclusion of Cardiff's survival bid.
But, when it comes to Kaba, there appears to be a little more clarity on where things stand, with Lamouchi left adamant the striker would be interested in extending his stay.
When asked if there had been any initial conversations over extending Kaba's stay, the Cardiff boss added: "No. We are clear between us. He knows my desire. I know what he wants. He wants to stay in the UK, and he would prefer to stay in Cardiff.
"This is not a problem. He will stay in the UK and we will try to keep him and sign him.
"But for the moment, the most important thing is to save the club as soon as possible. He knows that. I know that. It's not about my personal case or about his personal case. It's about the situation of the club.
"This is the most important. He has absolutely a 1,000 per cent desire to stay with us."
READ MORE:
