Everton may find it difficult to convince Idrissa Gana Gueye to move – journalist
Everton are up against it to bring Idrissa Gana Gueye back to Goodison Park with the 32-year-old unwilling to leave PSG, according to Ignazio Genuardi.
The Football 365 journalist has claimed that the Senegalese international is going to be difficult to convince to leave the Ligue 1 champions this summer having played 33 games in all competitions for the Parisiens.
Talks between the Toffees and Gueye have been ongoing over the past week and The Times reported on 31 July that the deal was being finalised to bring him back to Merseyside after leaving in 2019.
Gueye, who was also a part of the Senegal side to win the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year, has just one year left on his contract at the Parc Des Princes and PSG are open to selling him.
But his desire is the big stumbling block for Frank Lampard who is very keen to sign a central midfielder before the opening game of the new Premier League season against Chelsea.
Nightmare
A lot of Everton eggs will have been put in the Gueye basket ahead of the new campaign and it had looked like a deal was getting ever closer but this throws an almighty spanner into the works.
If the 32-year-old decides he is happy to stay in Paris for another year and leave for nothing at the end of next season then there isn’t much the Toffees can do to force his hand the other way.
The only thing that could tempt his would be a bucketload of money but after the club only just managed to pass financial fair play regulations for the 2021-22 season, that may not be a viable option for them.
A resolution has to be found very soon though because the new season is just a matter of days away and that clock seems to be ticking faster and faster as the hours go by.
Lampard needs to have a trick up his sleeve to pull out at the 11th hour or face taking on his former employers with a weakened side.