Everton tipped to reunite Ancelotti with another Napoli star

Everton have been tipped to sign Nikola Maksimovic from Napoli after his contract expiry.

The current state of Everton defence has been debatable. A lot of winnable games have been lost due to the shortcomings in defence. In spite of strengthening the defence in the summer, there’s room for more progress.

Ever since Carlo Ancelotti took over as manager, Everton have been linked to several players who the Italian worked with previously. It is not a surprise because you expect to lure such big players because of Ancelotti. Had Marco Silva or Ronald Koeman been the manager, we wouldn’t expect the Toffees getting linked to a superstar like James Rodriguez.

James Rodriguez, Isco, Allan, Hirving Lozano, Thiago Silva and Nikola Maksimovic were linked to a move. In fact, Ancelotti’s pulling power was successful in bringing James and Allan to Goodison.

Now, Everton have been tipped to reunite Ancelotti with Nikola Maksimovic. According to Journalist Ciro Venerato (via Sport Witness), the Serbian centre back could end up at Everton next summer. Maksimovic is into the final year of his contract and has failed to reach an agreement over an extension.

Back in the summer, the Napoli defender was open to a new deal but Gli Azzurri felt that the Serb had hefty wage demands for a player who will have a very little re-sale value once his new contract is about to run down. The 29 year old demanded a four year contract with an annual salary of €2.8 million per year. The Napoli hierarchy thought against investing in such an amount considering that the Serbian international is not even a mainstay in the defence.

With a Stadio San Paolo exit imminent next summer, Everton could be a highly preferable destination as per Ciro Venerato

"He could most likely go away. There are rumours but Napoli have made it clear that the relationship with the player will not continue if the player’s requests remain the current ones. Makismovic will be released in June. To date, the player is still a fan of Ancelotti and could be a great opportunity for Everton, who could take him on a free transfer."

A free transfer won’t hurt the Toffees and if Ancelotti is actually keen to reunite with the Serb, the transfer will happen. However, whether he’s the best available choice or not will remain debatable.

Will Maksimovic end up at Everton next summer?