Everton transfer news as Jean-Philippe Gbamin wants Germany return, agent confirms
Everton midfielder Jean-Phillippe Gbamin desperately wants to leave Goodison Park this summer and return to Germany, according to his agent.
The 27-year-old defensive midfielder has endured a torrid four-year spell at Goodison Park since his big-money £25m move from Mainz in 2019, signed as a replacement for Idrissa Gueye.
Gbamin has only been resigned to eight games, including six in the Premier League, and is currently on loan at Turkish Super Lig side Trabzonspor with his Goodison contract not up until 2024.
And the midfield ace’s agent Bernard Collignon speaking to BBC Sport [30 May] confirms they are working to grant him a new project, preferably back in Germany.
He said: “We will have to find another project for him. I am the one who chose Everton for him because it would have been a stepping stone to move on elsewhere.
“There was interest from Arsenal, Tottenham and even Jurgen Klopp wanted to sign him for Liverpool six months before but now Jean-Philippe wants to go back to Germany.”
“It is unbelievable what has happened at Everton,” added Collignon. “Jean-Philippe is so disappointed with everything that has happened and how things have not worked out for him.
Torrid spell
Gbamin was supposed to be the Everton answer to the departed Gueye when he left for Paris Saint-Germain in 2019, but because of recurring injury and fitness issues, that £25m spent has now proven an absolute waste.
The Ivory Coast international certainly had some talent in him, emerging a tough-tackling, dominant and assured midfielder who could have provided the club with the midfield base they needed in Gueye’s absence, but the Everton faithful weren’t given the opportunity to see it which is a real shame.
Signing Gbamin certainly will go down as one of Everton’s worst transfer decisions over the past decade or so and it’s a good thing that his agent has spoken out regarding his future.
It’s clear both parties don’t want him to take the Goodison Park pitch again, and its definitely best for all parties involved that he sets sail elsewhere this summer.
With much change expected on Merseyside this summer, the club can no longer afford to be associated with mediocrity and past errors having been flirting with such for so long.
Gbamin’s inevitable exit is one of the first steps needed in order to usher in a new era at Goodison Park.