Everton confirmed the signing of Abdoulaye Doucoure on Tuesday evening after agreeing a £20m deal with Watford. The 27-year-old has signed a three-year deal at Goodison Park and is our fourth acquisition of the summer after Niels Nkounkou arrived from Olympique Marseille, Allan arrived from Napoli and James Rodriguez arrived from Real Madrid.
What can we expect from Doucoure?
High levels of industry, composure in possession, creativity on the ball and a real attacking threat. Doucoure scored 17 goals and made 12 assists in 141 appearances for Watford (2016-2020), creating 38 chances, making 64 tackles, winning 55/112 aerial duels, having 40/67 successful dribbles and making 31 interceptions.
The Frenchman is effective at both ends of the pitch and contributed 10+ league goals in two of his last three seasons with the Hornets. Fans can expect to see Doucoure supplementing the attack and getting in the box for set pieces, but he’s also diligent in his defensive duties. He protects the ball well and isn’t short of pace, so he’ll dramatically improve our squad.
How will our midfield look next season?
Carlo Ancelotti has Allan, Doucoure, Andre Gomes, Jean-Philippe Gbamin, Fabian Delph, Tom Davies, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Muhamed Besic and Beni Baningime battling for just a couple of places in the side.
Delph, Davies and Sigurdsson regular featured last season, but the trio could make way for Allan, Doucoure and Gomes. Ancelotti has played a 4-3-3 in the past, so there’s a way he can start with all his best midfielders.
Gbamin is due to return in 2021, but it remains to be seen if he’ll upset the applecart when fit. Delph has an uncertain future and finds himself linked with a move to Leeds United and Burnley. Besic is unwanted and is likely to be sold this summer. Baningime might stick around in the U23s if he can’t find a loan move.
Summary
Doucoure is a brilliant addition to an already strong midfield. We want to push for a top-six finish next season and have brought in the personnel to do it. Strengthening the spine is essential for growth and we’ve done that in abundance with Allan and James’ acquisition.
In other news, Tom Davies may have an uncertain future at Everton