Everton battle Premier League clubs for ‘extraordinary’ Conor Gallagher transfer
Everton have been in contact with Chelsea about signing midfielder Conor Gallagher as a number of Premier League clubs are battling to sign him, according to Dean Jones.
The former Eurosport journalist said on 23 July that the Toffees have held the longest interest in the England international in an attempt to persuade him to make the move to Goodison Park.
But they are not alone in their pursuit of the 23-year-old, who former boss Thomas Tuchel once described as “extraordinary”, as West Ham, Tottenham, Crystal Palace and Newcastle have all been keeping an eye on his situation at Stamford Bridge.
“Conor Gallagher does not want to leave Chelsea so interest from Spurs, West Ham, Crystal Palace, Everton and Newcastle is all leading nowhere at this moment in time,” said Jones.
“This is a lad totally committed to establishing himself at the Bridge and while he will of course be open-minded further down the road if his path is totally backed, he’ll probably be in the starting line-up at the beginning of the season because there are no other options.
“Everton have been in touch over this one for the longest time and tried to sell themselves as a great platform for him to use to build his profile and standing in the game, and he would be pretty sure of game time week after week in their starting 11.
“I don’t think Everton will totally let go of that hope until the window is closed but from Gallagher’s point of view, it’s not ideal. He would leave London for the right opportunity but is that it?”
Unlikely
It seems incredibly unlikely as though this is the kind of deal the Toffees would be able to get over the line at this moment in time.
The club is operating under a tight budget due to ongoing financial constraints, so Sean Dyche seems to be looking around for any potential bargains rather than any big-money signings, with The Daily Mail reporting on 19 July that Chelsea are looking for a fee in the region of £40million for Gallagher.
Another issue is Everton’s form in the Premier League over the past couple of seasons has been pretty dire for a club of its stature and that’s likely to put some players off from signing at Goodison Park.
Gallagher is understandably a talent that is attracting interest from a number of Premier League sides at this moment in time, but it sounds like his immediate future will be at Stamford Bridge.
It’s one for the Toffees to keep an eye on as he could become available on loan or at a reduced price further down the line, but you would think it’s not a deal that’s currently possible for the club.
In other Everton news, concerns have surfaced around two Toffees stars.