Dynamo Kyiv manager confirms Vitaly Mykolenko close to Everton transfer
Dynamo Kyiv manager Mircea Lucescu has confirmed that Vitaly Mykolenko is set to join Everton in January and says he’s glad for it.
The 22-year-old left-back has been heavily linked with a move to Goodison Park this winter after a fall-out between Rafa Benitez and Lucas Digne left a vacancy open for the position.
While a deal hasn’t been made official yet, the Kyiv manager is seemingly taking the deal as a foregone conclusion following his latest comments.
Speaking to UA Football about how the team will cope without him he explained that another young player will take his place, but that he was glad the move was happening for Mykolenko.
“I am glad that a young player from my team is now moving to Everton. I mean Mykolenko,” he said.
“Another 18 or 19-year-old footballer will take his place. The rest (of the players) in defence are 19 or 20-years-old.”
Encouraging
That there are so many people rooting for Mykolenko to be a success at Everton can only be a good thing.
Mykolenko is likely to be needed to hit the ground running in a new country and a new league, so any confidence boost will ultimately be a good thing for him and the team.
Replacing Digne in the team will be no easy feat, but he has the attacking tools to do so and Benitez clearly has seen enough from him defensively to think he’s as good if not a better option for his team.
Everton fans will obviously back him from the start too and if he can hit the ground running he could well become the catalyst for an upturn in form and a strong end to the season.
A deal is expected to be completed early in January, so it’s not long until we get to see what he’s made of.
In other Everton news, Toffees star reveals expected return date from injury.