Nothing seems to be going in Everton’s way as the Toffees have been handed a major blow in the chase of Stade Rennais attacker Kamaldeen Sulemana on transfer deadline day. Everton had been pushing to sign Sulemana from Rennais but now the hopes of bringing him to Goodison Park are vanishing.
Everton received £45 million from Anthony Gordon’s sale and they are planning to reinvest that amount in signing a wide attacker and a striker to reinforce the frontline. Gordon’s departure leaves new manager Sean Dyche with just two wide options – Demarai Gray and Dwight McNeil. Andros Townsend is still recovering from his cruciate ligament injury, leaving Dyche with bare minimum options on the wing.
Arnaut Danjma could have played out wide but Everton saw the deal getting hijacked for the Dutchman in the eleventh hour. Newcastle United winger Ryan Fraser was also linked to the Toffees as the Scottish winger looks to leave the Magpies.
The most concrete links were of Rennais winger Sulemana. The 20 year old is subject to transfer interest from Everton and Southampton. Everton first made some inroads with his agents and a move looked on the cards.
Everton target Kamaldeen Sulemana decides to go to Southampton
Further, the Toffees were handed a boost when Sulemana also wanted to leave Rennais and was ready to push for a move. On Sunday, EFC submitted a verbal offer for the winger and waited for response as Southampton also launched a bid.
Finally, the Ligue 1 club agreed to sell the Ghanaian and accepted a €25 million offer from Everton and Southampton. It was now up to Sulemana to decide which club he wanted to join. According to Get French Football News, Sulemana has decided to go to Southampton, handing a major blow to the Toffees on the transfer deadline day.
With Sulemana now on his way to Saint Mary’s Stadium, EFC have once again been left dangling in the middle and all their hard work seems to have gone in vain. Given the timeframe now, Everton will now be in race against time to get a deal over the line.
The failure of not signing Sulemana will sting as the Toffees worked round the clock in the last few days to seal the transfer for the 20 year old Ghanaian. With just around 10 hours remaining in the transfer window, Everton are still awaiting their first January arrival.
After failing to sign Kamaldeen Sulemana, which player should the Toffees target?