Former England striker Kevin Phillips has suggested that Everton should look to cash in on Gylfi Sigurdsson and re-invest whatever funds can be raised from the Iceland midfielder’s departure.
Everton signed Sigurdsson from Swansea City in the summer of 2017 for a then club-record £45million, a fee which Phillips was startled by and does not believe the 30-year-old has ever lived up to in Royal Blue.
Sigurdsson is nearing his 100th appearance for the club in all competitions though would fall short if Carlo Ancelotti were to sanction his sale, with the Reykjavik-born creator currently on 98 outings and Everton not back in action until we face Watford on February 1.
But Phillips seemingly does not feel the 74-cap international’s recent performances warrant further minutes with the Toffees, having effectively brandished Sigurdsson a flop while urging Ancelotti to green light his exit.
“He’s a good player but he’s obviously come for a very big price,” Phillips told Football Insider. “It was £50million, wasn’t it? That surprised a lot of people and it surprised me if I’m honest.
Should Ancelotti look to sell Sigurdsson?
Yes
No
“I thought they paid way over the top but he’s never really lived up to that price tag so, could you potentially get him off the wage bill that frees up some cash for Ancelotti to go and spend elsewhere?
“It’s always difficult because who’s going to pay? They’re never going to get £50million for him, so it’ll be interesting to see how that one unfolds.”
Sigurdsson has made 24 of his 98 Everton appearances this season, with 20 outings in the starting line-up and a further four run-outs from the bench.
Ancelotti has not been able to utilise the £25.2m-rated playmaker in our two most recent Premier League fixtures, with Sigurdsson currently sidelined with a groin injury.
Sigurdsson’s performances this season do not necessarily mean he would face faced West Ham or Newcastle United, though, as the 30-year-old is only averaging a goal every 1576 minutes in the Premier League when he struck one every 241.1 last term, per WhoScored data.
He is also averaging a shot every 50.8 minutes having struck one every 36.4 last term and is making a successful dribble every 143.3 minutes to 82.5, but is playing a key ball every 40.4 minutes compared to 42.4, despite having five fewer assists.
In other Everton news, the club have likely seen our hopes of signing a £30m Champions League winner dashed for the last time.