£25 million Marco Silva signing could be headed for an Everton exit
Everton signed Jean-Philippe Gbamin in the summer of 2019 for £25 million in a bid to replace Idrissa Gueye who left a season ago. Everton losing their pivotal defensive midfielder was a big blow and Gbamin was termed as a like for like replacement.
The Ivorian was athletic, committing and defensively reliable. But, Gbamin’s Everton career hit the rocks soon as he suffered an ACL injury early in the 2019-20 season ruling him out for a large chunk of the season. As the player inched closer to recovery, he suffered another injury in training. An Achilles tendon rupture in May 2020 sidelined him for over 300 days, missing 45 games for the Toffees.
After his much awaited return where the Everton fans were dreading to see Gbamin in action and what can he do for the club, the Ivorian’s misfortune struck again as a medial collateral ligament injury kept him out for the rest of the season.
Into his third season as an Everton player, Gbamin has just managed to play eight games in the Everton jersey. The midfielder is now no longer in plans of current boss Frank Lampard, posing questions regarding his future at Goodison Park.
Everton midfielder Jean-Philippe Gbamin could leave
The player has just played 186 minutes of football this season and is yet to make any appearance under Lampard. The Ivorian was subject to loan interest as AS Roma considered bringing him on loan as an alternative to Boubacar Kamara.
With the arrivals of Dele Alli and Donny van de Beek, Gbamin could be restricted to the bench. Even though neither of the new signings challenges Gbamin directly, the increased competition in midfield will ensure that the 26 year old misses out.
According to Liverpool ECHO, midfielder Gbamin could head out on loan to the Russian side CSKA Moscow for the remainder of the season. The Russian winter transfer window remains open until 22nd February and the Russian side aim to strengthen their core with Gbamin.
Offloading Gbamin is perhaps in the best interest of Everton. The Toffees will save some portion of the £65,000 per week they pay to the 26 year old and if he does play well for CSKA Moscow, he could attract more suitors in the summer.
Everton are likely to go for a No 6 in the summer further indicating the lack of trust in Gbamin. Sadly, for the Ivorian, this has been a nightmare and to get through such a tormenting period is an achievement in itself. It is now time for the player to restart his career elsewhere.
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Will Jean-Philippe Gbamin leave the club?