How Jonathan David went from amateur prospect in Ottawa to a star targeted by Arsenal and Liverpool

If Lille are to spark an unlikely comeback against Chelsea in the Champions League, then you can bet Jonathan David will be at the heart of it.

David only turned professional four years ago, originally starting his career playing amateur football in Canada, but now the striker is one of Europe’s hottest properties ahead of the summer transfer window.

Arsenal, Liverpool and other Premier League clubs are tracking him, but there is interest from clubs in Italy and Spain too.

It underlines just how far David has come, who began his career playing amateur football in Ottawa.

His talent was clear then, though, and he was called up to represent Canada at youth level despite not playing professionally.

Determined to make it in Europe, David’s agent put together footage of his client to show clubs. There was interest from all three of Canada’s MLS teams, but the young striker was hungry to prove himself in Europe.

The footage had some of David’s performances for Canada’s Under-17s and scouts were impressed by what they saw. Despite not working in a professional setup, the youngster troubled a talented Mexico side with his movement, pace and technique.

In the end, three clubs offered trials - Gent, Red Bull Salzburg and Stuttgart.

A verbal agreement was struck with Gent for David to join them in January 2018, when he turned 18, but before that he made regular trips to the Belgian club. The striker would go over for two to three weeks at a time, training with their youth team, so he could hit the ground running when he joined.

David spent the rest of that season playing for Gent’s Under-21 before breaking into the first team.

Within two years he had begun to show his talent, scoring 30 goals in 60 league games, and clubs came