Goodison View: Everton must win race for reported Barcelona target
Everton have endured a massively disappointing season so far, but things are starting to look up after the exciting appointment of Carlo Ancelotti as manager.
With a coach as top drawer as the highly-respected Italian, you would expect the Toffees to be active in the January transfer window.
So it’s no surprise that stories have begun to emerge linking the Merseyside outfit with Player X and Player Y.
But one of the most exciting potential deals is a possible loan swoop for Barcelona’s young centre back Jean-Clair Todibo.
Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo reported recently that Ancelotti’s team are one of the sides looking to poach the 20-year-old from the Spanish champions on a temporary basis.
While loans aren’t necessarily ideal for a club the size of Everton, in this case it would fix a major issue for the new Blues boss.
The team have lost two centre halves since last season, with Kurt Zouma returning to parent club Chelsea and Phil Jagielka reuniting with Sheffield United.
Todibo could fill the gap that currently exists at Goodison Park. Having only three senior centre halves simply isn’t acceptable, and so having the Frenchman join Michael Keane, Yerry Mina and Mason Holgate would be perfect.
He’s only played three times this season as he’s struggled for game-time at the Nou Camp, but we know from experience that that doesn’t mean he’s a bad player.
Plus, when the youngster came in to start against Inter Milan in the Champions League last month, he made eight tackles, one interception, one block and four clearances on his way to a terrific WhoScored rating of 7.83.
Clearly this is a young man with tremendous talent, while the Toffees clearly have an excellent working relationship with Barca. Sounds like a win-win for everyone involved, no?
In other Everton news, Ancelotti has confirmed that one first team star had to have a scan on an injury on Thursday.