Everton to keep tranfer options open in hunt to sign Wilfried Gnonto, decision up to Leeds United – Alan Myers
Alan Myers believes Everton will be keeping their options open after reports emerged of a £25m submitted to Leeds United to sign Wilfried Gnonto.
The Sky Sports journalist, taking to his personal Twitter account (17 August), shares that nothing has changed in Everton’s pursuit of the Italian international and the decision regarding his future still rests with Leeds United.
Sky Sports reported on 16 August, on their live transfer blog (15:38) that Everton had submitted a mega £25m bid for Gnonto’s services with add-ons and a sell-on clause included for which Leeds rejected [Corriere dello Sport, 17 August].
And Myers, providing a response to an Everton fans question regarding any potential movement on Gnonto, tweeted:
“Nothing has changed, up to Leeds as has been the case from day 1, Everton will be keeping options open I’m sure.”
Everton fans will be frustrated by the slow pace of this transfer. While Leeds are well within their right to command a high fee for Gnonto, £25million seems fair for a player who desperately wants to leave the club and with one Premier League season under his belt.
It’s abundantly clear that Gnonto remains the Blues’ top attacking target after impressive deals for Youssef Chermiti, Arnaut Danjuma and Jack Harrison, but whether Everton will be willing to stump up an improvement on the £25m bid remains to be seen.
The Toffees will be buying Gnonto based on potential too, having already cracked his way into the senior Italy men’s side and shown real signs of excellence last season.
However, as Myers points out, Sean Dyche and Everton will be keeping their options and potentially have contingency plans in place should their pursuit fail and that’s the sign of a club who are proactive and well-planned in the transfer market.
So while the pursuit of Gnonto will be incredibly frustrating right now, a swift move for an alternative attacking target could very much be on the cards. What looks guaranteed is that Dyche is very well set for a much-improved attacking weaponry before the transfer window shuts.
In other Everton, one super-rich club are “eager” to sign Amadou Onana this summer and are willing to offer players in part exchange for the £60m-rated midfielder.
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