By Daniel Feliciano

19th Aug, 2022 | 3:10pm

Frank Lampard performs u-turn on Everton pursuit of Harry Winks

Frank Lampard has decided against pursuing a transfer for Harry Winks to Everton after studying the player closely, according to The Times.

The Toffees were linked with a move for the Tottenham midfielder earlier in the window, with many expectations that a deal was inevitable between the parties.

However no deal has materialised and the club’s interest seems to have cooled on the former England international and according to a report [August 19] it’s all down to Lampard.

They say the manager had a closer look at the player to see exactly what type of player he was and then decided against a move. What he didn’t like however, isn’t mentioned specifically.

Everton have since signed Amadou Onana from Lille and are on the verge of signing Idrissa Gueye from Paris Saint-Germain to strengthen their midfield, while they also tried to hijack a deal for Morgan Gibbs-White before he signed for Nottingham Forest.

Good decision

Winks is a Premier League proven player and has good experience and quality, but he isn’t really what the team needs right now.

Onana has come in and is a dynamic and powerful runner with the ball who is tidy in possession, while Gueye will bring defensive nous and tactical intelligence to the side.

Winks is a ball player but lacks athleticism and physicality, and in a team like Everton that doesn’t tend to have possession of the ball too much it means he wouldn’t be used to his strengths at Goodison Park.

With Spurs reportedly wanting around £20m for a deal to get done, it makes sense as to why the club walked away from a deal and instead focused on other targets.

Fans won’t be upset to hear the news and while more needs to be done in the transfer window before it closes, it’s good that they aren’t just signing anyone and actually are focusing on improving the team.