New Everton link to Spurs left back
In a very strange and seemingly unlikely transfer rumour Everton are being linked with a new left-back Tottenham Hotspur’s Sergio Reguilon.
The story claims that Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti is ready to move for the Spurs defender and sell Lucas Digne to Atletico Madrid!?
This is surely a none starter I think as the Toffees certainly don’t need another full-back on the left side of the team and French international Digne has of course just signed a new contract keeping him at the club until 2025.
On top of that Everton also brought in Niels Nkounkou last year and he has impressed in spells when he has played, particularly in the cup games this season. Long-term I think Nkounkou might take over at left-back with Digne moving into a more attacking position.
Some of these media reports and speculation does border on the truly bizarre and you have to wonder where they would get their ideas, information and perspective from.
Digne wasn’t anywhere near his best on Saturday night against Burnley but then in truth none of the Blues players turned up and performed impressively.
However, he is still one of the best all-round full-backs in the Premier League, so I don’t think he’s going to be sold this summer, although a lack of European football, might potentially make some of the club’s best players think about moving on.
He’s been one of, if not the most, consistent performers for the Toffees since he signed from Barcelona in 2018. Ancelotti is surely wanting to build his team around a player like Digne.
And it is of course the other side of the defence where Everton really need strengthening and one of the club’s main prioirities in the upcoming transfer window will be signing a new right-back.
The Burnley match once again exposed the weakness of the Toffees right side. While Mason Holgate has been generally doing reasonably well filling in as an emergency right-back, recently his performances have been very indifferent and he lacks the attacking instincts and skills to do the job of a modern full-back.
In addition the absence through injury of Abdoulaye Doucoure is a massive blow as he does so much important and effective spadework, mainly on the right side of the team, tracking back, covering and filling in for his team-mates.
Everton have been linked to both Max Aarons and Tariq Lamptey repeatedly recently and it does seem likely that the club will move for one of these two or possibly another right-back in the upcoming summer window.