Gnonto signing talk continues as Everton again said to be close to deal

More media reports continue to claim Everton are edging closer to a deal for Leeds United forward Wilfried Gnonto.

This rumour has been doing the rounds for so long now it is getting a bit repetative to write about it, as with so many of these transfer stories!

Anyway, recently Everton were said to have put a concrete bid of around £18 million on the table for the Italian Under-19s sarlet to try and prise him away from Elland Road.

That seemed to be a little premature to say the least and nothing more came of it indicating that those reports had jumped the gun somewhat.

Now, another media outlet are saying a deal for the Blues to sign the highly-rated young attacker, is edging closer to conpletition.

Gnonto is known to want to stay in England and the Premier League is his preferred option now that Leeds have been relegated and so a move to pastures new this summer seems very likely.

He is one of several younger players at the Yorkshire club who are no doubt being considered as possible transfer targets by Premier League outfits.

Aston Villa were the other club most strongly associated with a bid for the player although as yet there doesn’t appear to have been anything solid from them either.

The Italian forward has operated in a number of different positions and that versatility might well be a factor under consideration by Sean Dyche and Kevin Thelwell if indeed he is on their radar.

Gnonto’s age is a factor too. At 19 he is obvously very young and still a little raw but with significatn potential and possible sell-on value if he makes significant progress whether that is at Everton or another club.

Hopefully, we will get some resolution to this seemingly endless transfer story soon.

It does though seem probable that it will rumble on given the huge contraints the manager and Thewell are under and the difficulty they are having concluding deals.