View: Everton should prioritise other targets over Arsenal midfielder Xhaka
For some time now it has appeared as though Everton will look to pursue a new midfielder in the summer.
Despite JP Gbamin’s potential return Carlo Ancelotti still wants to further bolster his options, and that has led to plenty of speculation that the Blues are keen on Juventus midfielder Adrien Rabiot [CalcioMercato].
However London Sources on Twitter, who have contacts within Football.London, claim that Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka has emerged as a target for the Blues.
It looked as though Xhaka’s time as an Arsenal player was up after he was stripped of his captaincy in November 2019 following an incident involving fans from the month prior, but since then he has gone on to become a regular fixture in Mikel Arteta’s team.
The Switzerland international has started and played the duration of the Gunners’ last 14 Premier League matches [Transfermarkt], so the North London outfit would likely need to find a replacement before they allow him to leave.
However, the former Borussia Monchengladbach man, who is valued at £22.5million by Transfermarkt, wouldn’t represent the wisest signing for Everton this summer.
The Toffees have an ageing midfield already, with Abdoulaye Doucoure [28], Allan [30], Fabian Delph [31] and Gylfi Sigurdsson [31] all on the older side. Everton do have younger options in Tom Davies [22] and Gbamin [25], and any further signing would be better suited in a similar age range.
Xhaka is 28 currently and he’ll turn 29 shortly into the new season, so Everton would quickly see his value diminish after signing him from the Gunners, while he’d also have little room to improve and grow under Ancelotti.
Though Xhaka has exhibited strong ability on the ball for Arsenal, he has also shown himself to be someone who is error-prone, and Everton would be better off adding solidity and consistency to their spine.
Beggars can’t always be choosers, but Xhaka just doesn’t represent the type of player that Ancelotti should be targeting this summer. He’s inconsistent, has previous attitude issues and is pushing 30 – Xhaka just doesn’t tick the right boxes for us.
In other Everton news, Ancelotti has lamented Everton’s derisory form at Goodison Park this season.