Everton have identified Lucas Tousart, Adrien Tameze, Jean-Philippe Gbamin, and Tiemoue Bakayoko as the players the club would like to target in the wake of losing Idrissa Gana Gueye, according to RMC Sport.
The Senegal midfielder is due to sign a five-year contract with Paris Saint-Germain this summer, after Blues chiefs accepted a €32million (£28.6m) bid by the Parc des Princes natives.
Marcel Brands and Marco Silva are reluctant to part ways with the key defensive midfielder until his replacement has been secured, despite Gueye being expected in the French capital imminently to carry out his obligatory medical.
1.FSV Mainz 05 ace Jean-Philippe Gbamin had already emerged as a potential Gueye successor, with reports suggesting the Bundesliga outfit would demand £30million for the Ivorian. However, RMC Sport understand the Opel Arena natives will ask for €40million (£35.8m), as the 23-year-old can also play in central defence.
The French publication add that Gbamin is currently seen as the club’s number one target to replace Gueye, but are yet to open a line of contact with Die Nullfunfer.
Everton are believed to have contacted Olympique Lyonnais regarding long-term target Tousart and OGC Nice to discuss Patrick Vieira favourite Tameze, while our advances to acquire Bakayoko are currently unclear.
Chelsea are in discussions with new boss Frank Lampard to see if the former England international wants the Frenchman to play a part in his debut season back at Stamford Bridge, as they may look to offload the midfielder to help fund a rival bid for rumoured Toffees target Wilfried Zaha.
Bakayoko left many unimpressed during 2017/18 following his transfer from AS Monaco, but regained some of his lost form last season while on loan with AC Milan. He is now valued at £31.5million by TransferMarkt after featuring in 35 of the Rossoneri’s fixtures across all competitions, and recorded an average of one tackle every 32.9 minutes in the Serie A, along with 50 interceptions, 42 clearances and 34 blocks in total.
Director of Football Brands and Head of Recruitment Gretar Steinsson were in attendance of Olympique Lyonnais’ Ligue 1 clash with LOSC Lille in May to observe Tousart, meanwhile, but the midfielder did not feature. The Dutchman is believed to still harbour an interest in the €20million-valued (£17.9m) ace, however, with Lyon open to his departure following Thiago Mendes’ arrival and as Wolverhampton Wanderers circle.
Tameze is also claimed to have been in Brands’ view since the winter, and could face rival bids from Lille, Monaco and Atalanta Bergamo if he were to make a move for the £7.2m-rated Frenchman, who featured in all but one of Nice’s Ligue 1 ties last season under Vieira.
RMC Sport suggesting Brands has lined up Bakayoko, Tousart and Tameze as his alternatives to Gbamin sparked debate on Reddit amongst Blues supporters.
Here’s how these fans reacted…
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