Joao Virginia in action for Everton
Sporting Lisbon will reportedly now ‘open talks’ with Everton to bring in Joao Virginia on loan again for next season.
The Lowdown: Lack of game-time
Virginia was sent out on loan to Sporting at the start of the campaign, but has only played in eight matches in total over all competitions.
Now that the Goodison Park faithful have secured their safety in the Premier League, they will not be under as much pressure to sell England number one Jordan Pickford, so one would have to question whether Virginia would want to play second fiddle to the 28-year-old.
The Latest: Another loan?
As per Record (via Sport Witness), Sporting are now set to ‘open talks’ with the Merseyside club as early as next week to sign Virginia on loan once more.
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There is a buyout clause of €5m (£4.2m) to sign him on a permanent deal, but the Portuguese outfit have deemed that price to be ‘excessive’.
The Verdict: Sell
Given his lack of game-time at Sporting this term, another loan for Virginia to the same club does not seem sensible from the Toffees’ point of view.
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Having rarely featured for the senior team, they would surely want the goalkeeper to gain more experience in order to eventually challenge Pickford’s spot in net.
However, at 22 years of age, the 6 foot 3 colossus who David Unsworth once dubbed ‘unbelievable‘ surely needs to be moved on now, and the Blues should be looking to get as much money as possible from his sale.
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