Everton would like to present an outright buy offer for Robin Olsen in January.
The clouds of Everton goalkeeper crisis loomed over the heads of Carlo Ancelotti in the summer as Jordan Pickford’s performances last summer gave little or no respite to the fans and club management. The Englishman was criticized for blundering and committing howlers, conceding an astonishing 56 goals in 38 games.
The lack of competition in the goalkeeping department made it Pickford’s monopoly and the player was said to become complacent and lacking determination with no one other keeper in the team to push him or keep him on his toes. Signing a goalkeeper was on the Everton priority list as Ancelotti hoped to bring a netminder who could not only act as a Pickford backup but also dethrone the Englishman from his No.1 spot should his downward spiral continue.
On transfer deadline day, Everton managed to acquire the services of Robin Olsen on loan from AS Roma after being linked to the Swede, Sergio Romero and Pau Lopez. Ultimately, Olsen made the switch to Goodison but the fans who follow Serie A would know that the 30 year old himself carried a tag of being error prone.
Ancelotti has this trademark trait of rotating goalkeepers and likes to heave two healthy, competent goalkeepers in the ranks. The Italian’s goalkeeper rotation policy finally hit the Gwladys Street against Newcastle United when he handed Olsen his first Everton start, benching Pickford. This saw an end to Pickford’s 120 consecutive Premier League starts, most by any player. Even though the Toffees lost 2-1 to the Toons, Olsen was radiant and always alert.
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In a time where Pickford was struggling with form and off the field media bashing for the Virgil Van Dijk tackle, Olsen stepped up and showed his quality. He started his second game at Leicester away last week where he kept a clean sheet and was largely at ease during the entire game. In his third Toffees appearance, he let two goals in but had no fault of his own as Everton succumbed to Manchester United in the Carabao Cup.
Even though Pickford has been the first choice, we cannot discard that Olsen is just a squad filler. He has pushed Pickford to perform better and gives Ancelotti options to play with in the goalkeeping department.
Everton interested in a permanent transfer for Robin Olsen
According to Tuttomercatoweb, Everton could present an offer to buy Olsen to AS Roma in January. The priority for the Romans is to sign a goalkeeper as Lopez doesn’t offer the safety required. Mirante is young and still polishing his skills so the name of Salvatore Sirigu is being discussed in the Giallorossi offices.
Everton could sign Olsen permanently and the funds collected would be reinvested to bring a keeper at Stadio Olimpico as per the report. Olsen, currently on loan, has had a smooth spell at Goodison so far. The desire to make the loan signing permanent is a sign that the club management are happy with Olsen and would count him as an important part of the plans.
For me, Olsen is not the best in business but does the job required and if the Toffees can strike an economical deal with Roma, Olsen would be a respectable permanent addition to the squad.