Everton Weekly Rumour Round-Up: Ancelotti eyes cut price deal for defender and more
Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti is an Everton target.
Welcome to the Everton weekly rumour round-up, an article where I take 3 rumours and I give them a rating based off two criteria. The first is how realistic I think the transfer is, the second is how much of an impact I think the signing would have on the club.
This list varies from World Cup winners to players who’re currently ripping up the Championship, so let’s get right into the first player:
1. Samuel Umtiti
Source: Mundo Deportivo
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona are willing to sell World Cup winner Samuel Umtiti for only €12m (£10.3m). This is down to his lack of playing time under former Everton boss Ronald Koeman and his 75k per week wages which Barcelona would like to get off the books due to the club’s struggles because of COVID-19.
Umtiti has struggled with injuries over the past few years, missing around 80 games with injury since the Frenchman joined the Catalan outfit in 2016. However, Umtiti is a very talented defender which shows as he was an integral part of Les Bleus’ World Cup-winning side.
During the 2018 World Cup, Umtiti started 6 games and proved to be a very composed tackler, with a 75% tackle success rate and winning 66.7% of his aerial duels. Umtiti also showed his composure due to his disciplinary record, he actually won more fouls than he conceded, winning 9 and conceding 6 while not picking up a single red or yellow card during the competition.
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If we take a look into Umtiti’s record at club competition, we’d have to look back to the 15/16 season which earned him his move to Barcelona from Lyon. During that season Umtiti averaged 1 7.27 rating in Ligue 1. The Frenchman also averaged 1.4 tackles, 2.4 interceptions and 4.8 clearances. He’s also an accomplished passer, averaging around 90% ever since his move to the Camp Nou.
One issue with the signing is the strong centre-back core Everton is starting to develop. If Umtiti is signed it means some centre-backs will have to be moved around which could be possible since I believe Jarrad Branthwaite probably needs a loan move instead of playing under 23s football.
Evertonians could also see the departure of Yerry Mina, especially if Umtiti can be signed, this is because of the Colombian’s poor performances which could be the reason Carlo Ancelotti is taking a look at the centre-back market.