Months ago, I would have put money on Moise Kean staying at Everton this season and Cenk Tosun being sold before the transfer window shut, but now the opposite has rung true. Kean was loaned out to Paris Saint-Germain and Tosun is still here, albeit recovering from an Anterior Cruciate Ligament injury.
The 29-year-old recently returned to training and is building up his fitness, so he could now provide backup for Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison. Tosun is desperate to fight for his place and Carlo Ancelotti reportedly wants to keep him here, so could the Turkish international step into Kean’s shoes?
Tosun has a better reputation at Everton than Kean
We signed Tosun on a four-year deal from Besiktas in 2018 and he’s gone on to make 51 appearances in all competitions, scoring 10 goals with six assists. The 29-year-old has averaged a goal or assist every 3.18 games (159 minutes) which is considerably better than Kean. The 20-year-old scored just four goals and made two assists in 37 games, contributing a goal every 6.2 games (190 minutes), so the better striker right now is Tosun.
His relationship with Everton is much better too. Kean fell foul of club rules on a number of occasions last season. He was late for a team meeting and breached Government regulations in a pandemic. Tosun, however, gets on well with Ancelotti and has turned down approaches from other clubs in the past – Galatasaray and Al-Gharafa SC.
Backing Tosun could be strategic
If PSG don’t trigger Kean’s buying option, he’ll be an Everton player again next season. Tosun’s long-term future is still uncertain, however.
The Turkish international has less than two years on his deal and hasn’t garnered a lot of serious interest from other clubs, so we could be putting him in the shop window by giving him opportunities.
If Tosun performs, then he’s useful in the squad. At the very least, he’ll provide necessary backup in case we don’t sign another striker before the Football League transfer window shuts.
Summary
I admit, I didn’t see this coming, but it does make a lot of sense for Ancelotti to back Tosun over Kean right now – Tosun has a better goal record, made more appearances and has a better relationship with his manager.
Here’s hoping he can turn things around and be a valuable asset.