Everton

Everton: Club lines up possible swoop for Spartak Moscow midfielder, Alex Kral

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Image for Everton: Club lines up possible swoop for Spartak Moscow midfielder, Alex Kral

Everton scouts have reportedly ‘watched’ Spartak Moscow midfielder, Alex Kral, and could make a transfer swoop, according to Club Call.

In a report published on Monday morning, the British football information service revealed that Marco Silva’s scouts had watched the 21-year-old alongside two other Premier League clubs’ scouts – which were not disclosed.

The scouts reportedly attended Spartak’s derby match with local rivals Lokomotiv Moscow on Sunday, during which the Czech Republic defensive midfielder was awarded a 6.81/10 performance (via Whoscored).

England fans will be familiar with Kral after the recent match between Gareth Southgate’s side and the Czech Republic in which the midfielder delivered a sturdy performance during their 2-1 triumph (via BBC).

The tricky part about the move

Unfortunately for Silva, if the Portuguese manager was weighing up a possible January move, the 21-year-old will not be a sensible purchase until at least the summer of 2020.

As Kral began the season with SK Slavia Prague and played six times in the Fortuna Liga, before making the £10.8 million switch to Spartak Moscow – he would be unable to play for Everton until next season.

Under the current laws of FIFA, a player is able to be registered to three clubs in a season – therefore Everton could sign the 21-year-old – but the player can only play for two of the three clubs – so could not play until next season (as per InBrief).

Therefore, a move for the Czech would not make sense until next summer – unless the Toffees secured their man and loaned him back to Spartak for the remainder of the season.

However, Kral is on a five-year deal at the Otkritie Arena and would cost considerably more than his initial £10.8 million fee to pry the defensive midfielder away from Russia.

TiF Tactics – Is Kral better than what Silva already has?

Marco Silva currently has two out-and-out defensive midfield options at his disposal with Morgan Schneiderlin and £25 million summer signing, Jean-Phillipe Gbamin, already at the club.

The Ivorian 24-year-old, Gbamin, is currently ruled out through injury – however, he has earned a respectable average rating of 6.76/10 this season (via Whoscored).

Meanwhile, Schneiderlin has tallied a weak 6.07/10 in his 476 minutes for Everton this season, with the Frenchman supposedly currently in his peak years as a 29-year-old.

Kral outperforms both of these scores over the duration of his 392 minutes in the Russian Premier League this season, scoring a solid 6.81/10 (as per Whoscored).

The Czech Republic international averages 2.8 tackles per game, as well as 1.6 clearances (as per Whoscored), which is already better than what Gbamin and Schneiderlin can offer (2 & 1.7 for tackles, 0.5 & 1.3 for interceptions), so perhaps he would actually be an upgrade if his stats are anything to go by.

With the 21-year-old outperforming both of Everton’s defensive midfield options this season, Schneiderlin not getting any younger and at least a season of progression ahead for Kral before he could don Everton blue – the Czech could be worth a revisit for Marco Silva next summer.

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