Everton

Everton would struggle to replace Gueye

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Image for Everton would struggle to replace Gueye

OPINION

There is no denying Everton need a new striker to arrive in the summer and their reported pursuit of Bournemouth attacker Callum Wilson ticks all the right boxes.

The Toffees’ first-choice forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin managed only eight goals in his 2018/19 campaign and really Marco Silva’s side need an attacker who can lead the line and hit double digits.

According to The Sun  The Toffees are planning a £35million move for Wilson and given that the 27-year-old scored 15 goals in his latest season, it seems he’d fit the bill for what they need.

Yet the national newspaper’s report claims that the Toffees don’t just want Wilson, they also want to retain the services of Andre Gomes and Kurt Zouma who spent the recently-ended season on loan at Goodison Park.

The Sun claim that Wilson, Gomes and Zouma would cost the big-spending Merseysiders roughly £100million, which they could be forced to sell midfielder Idrissa Gueye to be able to get the trio.

Gueye should not be sold at any cost even if he could attract an offer of £45million as he is irreplaceable; and while a forward is needed to help the club move on, without Gueye to call upon it would leave a noticeable hole in the Toffees team.

The 29-year-old featured 35 times for Marco Silva’s side and it’s telling that in the five league matches he missed due to injury, the Toffees only managed to pick up one win and that was against Huddersfield.

This is likely because Gueye is the best defensive midfielder on Everton’s books as he is constantly putting in tackles, he averages 4.1 a game, and constantly putting his body on the line ensures the Toffees’ defence is well protected.

The only true midfield enforcer aside from Gueye that is at Goodison Park is Morgan Schneiderlin and he only averages 1.7 tackles a match which is noticeably lower.

While a player like Wilson is worth splashing the cash on, it would be a bit pointless if his arrival meant Gueye had to leave as it would just leave the Toffees with another frustrating problem.

So while the Toffees’ reported pursuit of Wilson will get pulses racing as he seems the ideal goalscorer for them to recruit, this reported pursuit shows that all that glitters is not gold when you consider the sacrifice the club would have to make.

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