After a thoroughly impressive end to the season, during which they beat the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea, Everton have already begun their summer spending.
While, at times, it looked a difficult campaign in which Marco Silva was reported by the Telegraph to be under pressure back in January, the late surge did appear to get things back on track and there has already been cause for celebration in the market, with formerly on-loan Andre Gomes already putting pen to paper, signing a £22m deal, per BBC Sport.
Furthermore, where it had previously seemed entirely off the table, a potential deal for winger Bertrand Traore is now back on the cards. Telefoot have reported Everton and Lyon are now back in talks, only a week after Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas was quoted at a press conference (via GFFN) stating the door for a deal was shut.
The 23-year-old, valued at £13.5m by Transfermarkt, scored seven and assisted three in 34 Ligue 1 appearances that helped guide Lyon to a third-placed finish and he also heavily featured in their Champions League campaign, scoring and assisting one apiece in eight games.
According to the Daily Star, Marco Silva has requested significant funds this summer in a bid to close the gap between themselves and the top six. In addition, they report Everton are keen to add to their front-line, with Cenk Tosun branded an expensive mistake and Dominic Calvert-Lewin still just 22-years-old.
Traore, therefore, seems to fit the bill. A well-travelled Burkina Faso international, he has played in France with Lyon and in both Holland and England with Ajax and Chelsea respectively and was praised by caretaker boss Guus Hiddink for his attitude during their time together in West London back in 2016.
”He is open to learn and you can teach him, you can say ‘work on this’ and he is very clever to do so”, said the Dutchman, per BBC Sport.
While not always operating as a central striker, Transfermarkt do collate that 38 of his career goals came from that role and, perhaps with Richarlison in the team, the two could operate as a fluid frontline alongside Calvert-Lewin or with either one centrally with Bernard or Theo Walcott flanking them. Averaging 1.7 shots per game across all competitions last season (per WhoScored), he would go into the squad as the third most potent in that regard, with only the aforementioned Brazilian and Gylfi Sigurdsson averaging more.
Considering the fact the Toffees scored 11 fewer goals than sixth-placed Manchester United last season, more firepower is clearly required if Everton are going to break into the upper echelons of the table, so that kind of impetus would presumably be welcome.
Some bad news – however – the Liverpool Echo have reported that any rumours of a potential move are at this point merely speculation.
Obviously, these are conflicting reports, but either way, there is little doubt that the former Chelsea man could improve the attacking ranks at Goodison Park.
Everton fans, would you be happy with the signing of Bertrand Traore? Has he done enough to justify a move? Or is he below the required calibre of signing? Let us know!
About the Author
