It has long been rumoured that Nacer Bouhanni will leave FDJ at the end of season. L'Equipe now reports that he is close to finalizing a contract with Cofidis that would see him become the main sprinter of the French squad.

All year there has been a lot of speculation about Nacer Bouhanni's future. His contract expires at the end of the season and with the ever growing tension between him and rival Arnaud Demare, it has become apparent that the Frenchman is likely to leave his FDJ team for the 2015 season.

Earlier this week FDJ manager Marc Madiot made it clear that he currently doesn't have the money to meet Bouhanni's demands. Yesterday, however, he told L'Equipe that his sprinter has not yet told him that he will definitively be jumping the ship.

The speculation increased on Monday when FDJ announced that Bouhanni had not been selected for the Tour de France and even though UCI rules prohibit him to do so, L'Equipe have speculated that he will announce his future team tomorrow at the French road race championships.

A few weeks ago, Bouhanni said that he had to choose between three offers, with most suggesting that FDJ, Cofidis and an unnamed foreign team were still in the running. Now it seems that Cofidis is in pole position.

"The negotiations are going well," Cofidis president Thierry Vittu told L'Equipe ."I think we can offer Nacer Bouhanni a good sports project. Yvon Sanquer (manager) does a good work with his staff. Obviously, I would be delighted to welcome him because I am convinced he would be able to progress here. He is only at the beginning of his career. He must stil improve. We can help him to do so."

If he leaves FDJ, Bouhanni will have to wait until August 1 to announce his new team if he wants to be in compliance with the UCI rules.