The last summer, there were growing concerns about having a striker backup to Dominic Calvert-Lewin at Everton. Cenk Tosun was recuperating from his injury and Moise Kean had failed to impress in his first season at Goodison Park. Arrived for a hefty £27 million fee from Juventus, Kean was seen as a hot prospect with abundant promise. However, the lack of appearances and the brutal Premier League nature didn’t allow the Italian to settle.
The summer bred uncertainty for Kean as Juventus attempted to sign him back on loan to bolster their attack under the new manager Andrea Pirlo. PSG acquired him on a loan deal with no option to buy. Everton wanted to keep hold of the striker as Carlo Ancelotti and the club hierarchy believed that Kean can be an important player in the future.
The switch from Merseyside to Paris proved to be a winning move for Kean as he simply became unstoppable in the Ligue 1. Taking advantage of Mauro Icardi’s spell on the sidelines, Kean became a menace for opposition defenders. In 26 games for Les Parisiens, the Italian has scored 14 goals.
Moise Kean has improved massively since his switch to PSG from Everton
The Italian is playing with confidence and that is reflected in his play. He is more direct and more clinical. In 31 Premier League appearances Kean played last season and at the start of this season, he managed 31 shots out of which 13 were on target.
In comparison to 18 Ligue 1 games played this term, he’s had more shots (39 shots with 16 on target) than the combined total at Goodison Park. His passing has marginally improved with a passing accuracy of 78% as compared to 73% at Everton. (stats vis FBref)
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There is enough evidence to prove Kean’s upsurge at Parc des Princes. The PSG hierarchy is more than convinced that the 20 year old striker can help the team achieve greater heights and perform at the toughest of stages. The Ligue 1 giants want to redeem him permanently but since the loan deal contains no buy clause, PSG will have to negotiate with Everton at the end of the season.
An earlier report from Fabrizio Romano stated that PSG Sporting director Leonardo is in love with Kean and wants to have him in Paris for the next season as well but the negotiations won’t be easy. Everton are set to slap a price tag of €45-€50 million. Now in an interview, Leonard has provided some hints on the future of Kean.
"Today, knowing a value is difficult. The choice was obvious. We made the choice to take a young player, whom we have known for a long time. We took it for 1 year, then we’ll see. Everton didn’t want to lose him. He plays very well, he scores. He has an important future.But there, we cannot know. We could not do otherwise than the loan and I think that today having it available for a year was already very positive. If we can see the future under certain conditions, we will try to see how it goes. But today, it’s very complicated to know. (via Le10 Sport)"
Leonardo’s love for Kean is not hidden but the effects of the current pandemic on the club finances also need to be taken into the account, even for a club of such a massive size and financial backing. A decision will need to be made as we approach the business end of this season. One thing is sure, a busy transformative summer is on the cards for Moise Kean.
Will PSG manage to sign Moise Kean permanently?