According to Globo Esporte, Everton’s pursuit of Everton Soares has taken a hit as Benfica lead the race for his signature. The Portuguese outfit are yet to reach an agreement for the coveted 24-year-old, but Globo Esporte say they’re still in talks with Gremio and have lodged a bid of €22m.
Who is Everton?
He’s a 24-year-old Brazilian forward who plays for Gremio. Everton joined the Serie A outfit from Fortaleza in 2013 and has gone on to make 179 appearances in all competitions, scoring 47 goals with 17 assists. He’s come into form in the last two seasons, contributing 18 goals from 38 games in 2018 and 22 goals from 42 games in 2019.
Everton’s impressive goal output has led to interest from clubs overseas. In addition to Everton and Benfica, Arsenal and West Bromwich Albion are among the clubs that have been linked in the last year, so we may have to move fast this summer.
Why do we need him?
Carlo Ancelotti has Richarlison, Alex Iwobi, Bernard and Theo Walcott who can operate as wide forwards, but Richarlison is playing as a centre-forward now, Iwobi has struggled for consistency, Bernard was offered out to AS Roma last season and Walcott has left a lot to be desired in 2019/20.
Iwobi, Bernard and Walcott have only scored seven goals between them, so some fresh blood would be a benefit.
What are the chances of us signing him?
Globo Esporte say Benfica have made an offer for Everton, but Gremio want more than €22m before letting him go. This opens the door for us to potentially hijack a deal, but Everton isn’t the only player on our radar.
We’ve been linked with Cengiz Under, Wilfried Zaha, Memphis Depay, Jose Callejon, Rafa Silva, Jack Grealish, Philippe Coutinho and Jesse Lingard, so there are alternatives if we don’t sign the Brazilian.
Summary
We definitely need a wide forward to provide goals and assists, so our interest in Everton makes a lot of sense. And with Marcel Brands & Carlo Ancelotti wanting to lower the average age of the squad this summer, Everton fits the criteria perfectly and wouldn’t break the bank either.
In other news, Everton are weighing up a move for Barcelona’s defender