Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
There’s no doubting the talent that Romelu Lukaku has at his disposal and his 7 Premier League goals in 9 appearances is testament to that. Those goals have played an integral role in lifting Everton to 7th in the table but a fair criticism would be that without the Belgian internationals goals they wouldn’t be in such a promising position right now.
With Lukaku being such a talisman for the club there is always the danger of an over reliance on a particular player, Tottenham fans will only have to point to the injury to Harry Kane to show how absence to a key player can derail a clubs season.
Although Lukaku missed the first two games of the season his form and fitness has been second to none as of late but should the worst happen and he does have a length spell on the sidelines then you do have to wonder who could step up to the plate and be a worthwhile replacement.
Once you go past the former Chelsea striker the reading doesn’t look particularly impressive. On loan Enner Valencia has got nowhere near the side while Arouna Kone’s time has been marginalised since Ronald Koeman took charge of the club. That said the situation is even worse for Oumar Niasse, purchased for £11m by Roberto Martinez in January the Nigerian has not even been offered a squad number for this season.
If Everton want to secure European football again then they will have to reinforce their squad in January to make sure they can keep pace with the half dozen clubs that currently sit above them in the league table.
So let’s now take a look at five potential transfer targets that could make their way to Merseyside in the New Year
Charlie Austin
Bought to Southampton by Ronald Koeman back in January of this year their working relationship was obviously cut short by the Dutchman’s departure from the club to move up to Merseyside. But could Koeman now look to reignite that relationship in the blue of Everton.
After scoring just a solitary goal for Southampton last season, Austin has found the net with more regularity this season with the 27 year old bagging 5 goals in 10 appearances and it’s that rate of 1 goal in 2 which will alert the Everton hierarchy to make a potential bid.
It only cost the relative bargain of £4m for Austin to make the move from Queens Park Rangers to Southampton and if Everton were to perhaps test the waters with a bid in the £8-10m bracket then there is every chance that Austin and Koeman could be linking up again come January.
Memphis Depay
Of the many players that Jose Mourinho has had a run in with at Manchester United season it seems as if Depay is one of the ones that has fallen out of favour the most and you know have to question how much longer the Dutchman has at Old Trafford.
Bought to the club last season under much fanfare, the former PSV man has failed to live up to the hype and expectation that many had for the 22 year old after being signed by compatriot Louis Van Gaal. With only 2 goals in 33 league appearances it’s not the return expected of a player who by many former professionals have tipped him to be ‘the greatest player in the world in the years to come’.
And it’s Everton that can perhaps enable him to get closer to that potential that he has. A chance to once again link up under the stewardship of a Dutch manager could do Depay the world of good and unlock the talent that we saw him show at PSV where he scored 22 goals in their title winning season of 2014-15 season. The Old Trafford stint hasn’t worked for Depay but at his age we certainly shouldn’t write him off just yet.
Manolo Gabbiadini
A versatile forward, Gabbiadini has been linked with a whole host of Premier League clubs with Everton reported to be one of the ones at the front of the queue. But the signature of the Italian international will not come cheap with the price reported to be £25m.
The Napoli star scored 5 goals in 23 Serie A appearances last season but it seems as if life after Gonzalo Higuain is proving tough for the Neapolitan’s as he has only managed to register a solitary goal in this current campaign but there is no doubting the talents that the 24 year old has to offer.
What will be most appealing to Everton is the fact that he can play in all manner of attacking roles, therefore he wouldn’t be purchased just to slot in for Lukaku’s absence but he could also compliment him by providing the service that he requires to torment opposition defences.
Lukasz Teodorczyk
Another man on Everton’s radar is Polish forward Lukasz Teodorczyk and it is believed that £12m could be enough to prise him from Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kiev. Although it’s not the Ukrainian Premier League in which Teodorczyk is lighting up but that of the Belgian Pro League with Anderlecht where he is currently on loan.
And it’s his 14 goals this season that have put him on the radar of a handful of Premier League clubs who will look to compete for his signature in the New Year. Teodorczyk has got Champions League experience and faced Manchester City last season in the Round of 16.
If Everton are going to capture the signature of the 25 year old Polish international then there main competition will come from Anderlecht themselves who have a clause to make the deal permanent. You would imagine should his goal scoring exploits continue then they will certainly want to. If that is the case Everton will then just have to hope that the lure of the Premier League is strong enough to convince him to sign.
Rachid Ghezzal
Everton are believed to have made a £9m bid for Ghezzal in the Summer only to see the offer turn down by the player who stated a desire to stay in France with current club Lyon. But with Ghezzal out of contract in the Summer there is every chance Everton could try their luck again in January.
Ghezzal is currently refusing to sign the three year deal that Lyon offered him and they may well now decide to cut their losses and try recoup some form of fee before running the risk of seeing him depart the French outfit for nothing next Summer.
A key element in the move for Ghezzal will be the fact their current Director of Football Steve Walsh identified Ghezzal as a key target when holding the same role at Leicester. Everton have already been rebuffed once but will they get their man second time around?
