Everton and Arsenal are the leaders among a group of Premier League clubs chasing the signing of Hamburg enforcer David Bates just months after he left Scottish club Rangers on a free transfer, according to the Sunday Mirror.
The print edition of the paper (21/10, Page 67) claims that the Toffees and the Gunners lead the likes of Leicester City, Southampton and Watford in scouting the 22-year-old, who made a shock exit from Ibrox when he agreed a deal to move to Germany on a free at the end of his contract in June.
The 6’4″ (source: Transfermarkt) defender, who made 61 appearances while in the UK, 28 of those for Rangers, has turned out seven times for his new club in the second tier of Germany.
Good move for Everton?
Bates shocked everyone in Scotland when he agreed to make the move to Hamburg, who were still battling it out for their Bundesliga place in the latter half of last season.
He was highly rated at Ibrox but had he been impressing enough, he surely would have been on the radar of English clubs with his contract coming to an end.
The Scottish top flight and the second tier in Germany are hardly great markers for quality football and making the step up to the Premier League will be tougher than he thinks.
It is a strange one for the likes of Everton and Arsenal to be chasing him, and with the quality at centre back the Toffees already have, this one does not make much sense.
This is Futbol rating: 4/10
Likely to happen?
Bates only moved from Scotland to Germany in the summer and while Hamburg might be tempted to make a healthy profit by selling him to an English side, they are much more likely going to want to keep him for their push for promotion.
Everton, Arsenal, or any other Premier League side would want to snap him up for a cheaper deal, and as such they are unlikely to agree terms with the north German outfit.
Maybe next summer something will happen, but a January move looks off the cards.
This is Futbol rating: 3/10