The Toffees’ season is coming to an end, with the closing game to be played on Sunday against Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison. As soon as the final whistle is blown at 5 o’clock the eyes of most Evertonians will on be on the summer comings and goings at the club. Here is a quick weekend round up of some of the names who have been tipped to wear the royal blue jersey next season.
Virgil van Dijk (Celtic)- The Daily Mail have reported that the Blues are in battle with Southampton for the signature of the highly-rated Dutchman/ With Southampton having doubts over keeping both defenders Jose Fonte and Toby Alderweireld, Saints are in need of a defender. Also facing this problem is Everton with the all but certain departure of club veteran Sylvain Distin and other players not getting any younger, Roberto Martinez will be wanting to wanting to refresh the back four. The Celtic manager Ronny Delia has put a £10 million price tag on Van Dijk and in the end the Dutch defender could ultimately prove to be too costly for Martinez if his comments about his transfer pot will be this summer are to be believed, but we can only wait and see what happens.
Nani (Manchester United- currently on loan at Sporting Lisbon)- It was reported in The Metro yesterday that Nani was a target on Everton’s winger list for the summer. The 28-year-old has enjoyed a decent season at Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon where he was notched up 11 goals in 30 appearances and with Nani not looking like he is in current United manager Louis Van Gael’s future, the winger does look like he is on his way out of Old Trafford on either a loan or a permanent move. As with van Dijk, money could be a problem with his current wage at £110,000 a week likely to be a major stumbling block for the club.
Javier Hernandez (Manchester United- currently on loan at Real Madrid)- Another Red Devil that doesn’t seem to be in Louis van Gaal’s plans. The Mirror has reported that the Blues are in a three-way battle with Spurs and West Ham for the Mexican as it has been understood that Real aren’t going to make his current loan move permanent. Hernandez himself has stated that he doesn’t “want it easy” in the MLS where newcomers Orlando City have taken an interest in him and he is more willing to join a club in Germany, Spain or England so a move to L4 4EL could be on.
Nolito (Celta Vigo)- According to Sportsvibe, Martinez is weighing up a £13 million deal for Nolito who has impressed many with his performances this season. Everton have been linked with the Celta Vigo flyer since his last summer and his impressive display against the Blues in pre-season at Prenton Park, but The Toffees are in for some stiff competition as it is reported by many media outlets throughout Europe that many other teams wantthe Spanish international.
Gerard Deulofeu (Barcelona- currently on loan at Sevilla)- This rumour is more of an interesting one as technically no newspapers, websites or even Deulofeu have actually said it, but this rumour has been brought up through Instagram. Yes, you have read that right, Instagram. The rumour sparked back into life when the Catalan commented on Romelu Luakaku’s picture of him with Joel Robles and Kevin Mirallas, next thing you know it Lukaku follows ‘Geri’ and Evertonians all over social media go into a Lukaku-esque meltdown when they seen him post the now famous picture of him looking to “write a new chapter”. As much as I can dream of Deulofeu coming back I can’t see it happening but it’s nice to be proved wrong now and again….
Who would you like to see at Goodison this summer? Follow us on Twitter at @TheToffeeTalk and tweet us your suggestions.
