Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has backed
Depay struggled at Manchester United following his arrival from PSV 18 months ago making just 16 Premier League starts and scoring twice.
He has scarcely featured under Jose Mourinho this term, and now is heading to Ligue 1 for an initial £14million, with a further £7million in bonuses.
The Lyon chief doesn't expect to have the deal finalised ahead of Sunday's showdown with Marseille, but he is backing Depay to rediscover the form that saw him net 22 goals in his final season in Holland, leading PSV to the title.
“We’ve bet on a player who wants to show his immense talent," Aulas told RMC Sport.
"There was a lot of interest in him from his time with Holland and in Eindhoven, where he had two fantastic seasons.
“When you see him developing, you get the impression that he really wants to show his immense talent. So we hope, as we hoped with the women’s team by bringing in Alex Morgan, and we are not disappointed.”
United spent £25million to take Depay to Old Trafford in 2015, but the winger failed to impress, initially under Louis van Gaal and now Mourinho.
“It was a dream, because he corresponds exactly with the player we were looking for," declared Aulas. "In addition, he has a certain panache.
“It’s true that Jose Mourinho didn’t play him that much, so there was an opportunity for us to negotiate with Manchester United.
“This is a big operation, because I think it will be around €16.5million (£14m), with up to €8million (£7m) in bonuses.
"It’s a major investment.
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