Everton: 3 players Everton should sign in January to challenge for European football
There were whispers in the summer about Everton being interested in Ismaila Sarr.
Ismaila Sarr
This is a player I’ve been a huge fan since his days at Rennes, and I believe we should’ve signed in before Watford got the chance. After some pretty impressive performances for Watford last year, especially the one against Liverpool, Sarr was somehow not snapped up in the transfer window and has been a standout for the Hornets in their return to the Championship.
In his 9 appearances, the Senegalese winger has 3 goals and an assist, along with 2 Man of the Match performances, continuing his impressive performances that he started showing towards the end of the previous season.
If we signed Sarr he’d definitely become the starting right-winger, which would allow James to move into the middle, his blistering speed and good finishing would be a vital asset to the team. He’s also a solid creator which he’s showed this season.
Sarr currently averages 2.2 dribbles in the Championship (5th best) and also plays around 1 key pass per game. One issue could be for Everton is he’s only crossing around 0.4 times per game, which is around once every 2.5 games, and in a cross-heavy Everton side he’d definitely need to improve those numbers.
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How Much Would Everton Pay?
I feel like this one has two outcomes, depending on where Watford are in the table when it comes to the January transfer window. Watford are currently 5th in the Championship on 22 points, but that’s only 2 points behind Norwich who are top, so if Watford can continue and are battling for automatic promotion when January rolls around, they’ll be unwilling to sell arguably their best player unless it’s for a large sum of money.
So if Everton tried to sign Sarr from an in-form Watford who are battling towards the top of the Championship, I’d guess the Hornets would only part with him for around £45-£50million, which I don’t believe would be worth it for someone who’s valued at around £20million on Transfermarkt.
With how unpredictable the Championship is, this second outcome is also very possible. This sees a dip in form for the North-west London side, and in January they’re located just outside the play-off positions.
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This could see Sarr lose faith in the project at Watford, which starts with them bouncing right back to the Premier League, and the wide-man demands a transfer. In this situation, I believe he still wouldn’t be cheap and I’d say Everton would have to pay around £25-£30million for his services.