According to Simon Jones of Mail Online, Everton have held talks with 1.FSV Mainz 05 over Jean-Philippe Gbamin. The 23-year-old has made 95 appearances in all competitions for Mainz since joining from RC Lens in 2016 and can operate in defence & midfield.
His agent Bernard Collignon recently admitted to Le Parisien that Gbamin “is excited about the possibility of joining Everton. Discovering the Premier League at a team at the top of table would be a great opportunity for him and represent a great next step.”
The Ivorian international could be a replacement for Idrissa Gueye who is nearing a move to Paris Saint-Germain. He would also be an option at centre-back if Everton fail in their bid to re-sign Kurt Zouma from Chelsea. Mail Online say it will take a £30m bid to land Gbamin’s signature which could be paid for through Gueye’s £29m sale.
Marco Silva is strengthening the Everton side in a key area, as the Toffees risked going into next season with only Mason Holgate and Matthew Pennington as backup centre-backs if they didn’t bring in a new face. In midfield, Gueye and Morgan Schneiderlin could be on their way out this summer and will need replacing.
Bringing in Andre Gomes and Fabian Delph somewhat solved that problem, but Gbamin’s affordable asking price, experience in Ligue 1 and versatility may have proven too difficult to ignore.