Everton could offload £22 million player in a swap deal with Serie A side

The end of the transfer season is approaching sooner than expected and Everton are yet to patch up their midfield group. The Toffees have been trying to offload Andre Gomes to bring in an upgrade on the Portuguese.

Everton severely underperformed last season with creativity being their primary issue, The team finished near the bottom of the league in goals scored. Perhaps the club would have performed better had all their players been healthy throughout the season but regardless a change is necessary before the start of the season.

Gomes is a great example of a player who underperformed due to injury issues. Gomes suffered a major injury to his ankle back in 2018 after which he has suffered recurring niggles and strains which have sidelined him from time to time, especially last season. He missed more than 20 games during the 2019-2020 season with Everton and was sidelined again last season for a good portion of the season.

Gomes is now 28-years old so his window for a breakout season is closing quickly. Everton are paying the Portuguese midfielder around £100,000 per week, making him one of the highest paid players at the club. According to The Mirror, Everton would like to part ways to ease the financial burden and bring in a more consistent player. A few days ago, the former Barcelona man was linked with a return to La Liga with Sevilla.

Can Everton and Juventus ponder on a swap deal for Andre Gomes-Adrien Rabiot?

As per the report, Juventus are rumored to be suitors for the Portuguese midfielder through a swap deal for Adrien Rabiot. Rabiot possesses a higher salary than Gomes but he does not share injury risk so it’s worth the investment.

Rabiot appeared in over 30 Serie A matches for Juventus in the past two seasons and he has gained experience playing meaningful football at the Champions League level. The move would provide stability to an Everton unit which has struggled greatly this past season.

A reliable and healthy midfielder is necessary to win Premier League games and Rabiot offers just that with this swap deal. The club will inevitably lose money on their Gomes investment since they overpaid Barcelona for his services back in 2019. Everton purchased him for £22 million and his value currently stands closer to the £15 million mark. Perhaps Juventus will cut the Toffees a deal since they will be offloading a massive contract.

Even if this swap deal does go through, the Royal Blues are not in a position to pay a huge sum of salary to Rabiot so the Frenchman will have to take a big pay cut to come to Goodison Park, where there’s no guarantee of European football. It is all very unclear whether this deal will take place or not.

Do you think Andre Gomes deserves another chance with Everton?