Jermaine Pennant tips Everton to move for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Everton could take advantage of the fallout at Arsenal to make Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang a key signing for new manager Frank Lampard, says Jermaine Pennant.
The former Premier League golden boot winner looks set to exit The Emirates after he was stripped of the Gunners captaincy by Mikel Arteta following disciplinary breaches.
And ex-Arsenal winger Pennant believes that could give the Toffees a chance to bring in a “big name” who will help them out of a relegation battle.
Pennant told Best of Bets: “Pierre is a great footballer, something really bad obviously happened at Arsenal – serious enough to strip him of [the] captaincy – and this may work as a deterrent for some clubs.
“There will be some teams out there, such as Everton, who require a big name striker to help them. So, that can play in his favour, because he’s a big name, and he can score goals.
“So, it might not be a top, top tier team, but middle tier, and he shouldn’t find a problem there, regardless of what’s gone on at Arsenal, if he comes out saying, “I just wanna play, I just want to prove, I want to get back into things,” they should take him.”
Surely not?
Now that the manager issue appears to have finally been settled the club needs to move fast to make some moves in the last couple of days of the January transfer window.
Frank Lampard will be looking to strengthen his new side as he seeks to steer them away from the relegation zone.
He reportedly will already have midfield reinforcements in the form of Donny van de Beek, who Fabrizio Romano says will be arriving on loan for the rest of the season, with no option to buy.
But a proven Premier League goalscorer to come in up front and team with Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison could be a game-changer.
Whether the Gabon international would be available for a Premier League move is another matter, as the Daily Mail are reporting he has a deal in place to move to Barcelona.
As with everything at the Camp Nou currently that appears to hinge on departures, specifically Ousmane Dembele in this case, so it could always fall through.
But whatever the issues are that have seen him fall from top to bottom in North London perhaps should lead Lampard to steer clear, as he already has enough problems to solve at Goodison as it is.
In other Everton news, the club have reportedly discussed bringing in this PL man before the end of the window.