Everton could find the field for Jaden Philogene’s signature even more crowded with Aston Villa activating the matching rights clause for the Hull City winger.
After previously having loan spells in the Championship at Stoke City and Cardiff City, on September 1 last year, the wide man joined Hull City from Villa for an undisclosed fee, understood to be in the region of £5million, and went on to feature 32 times last season, scoring 12 goals and providing six assists as Liam Rosenior’s side narrowly missed out on the play-offs.
The ECHO understands Villa have a three-day window to match a bid once a deal is agreed but given that Philogene left them for regular football less than 10 months ago, they will leave it up to the player.
Sources close to the West Midlands club – who signed Lewis Dobbin from Everton last month – have questioned why Philogene would want to come back so soon after departing to play more games. But with Unai Emery’s side offering Champions League football next season, then if the 22-year-old is open to a return then that would put Villa in pole position in a race that has already featured several twists and turns, including the player’s agent Ivo Camacho sharing a photograph of himself at the Blues’ Finch Farm training complex in Halewood.
Despite reports on Tuesday afternoon that Philogene’s preferred destination was now Ipswich Town, Everton insiders insisted they had a deal in place and they believed the player was keen on a move to Goodison Park although there was strong competition for him.
Developed in the youth ranks at Villa, he attracted attention from Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund and made his senior debut as a last-minute substitute in a 2-1 win at Tottenham Hotspur on May 19, 2021.
Philogene made six first-team appearances in total for Villa with his final outing being a three-minute cameo in a 5-1 defeat against Newcastle United at St James’ Park on August 12 last year.
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