Everton signing Orel Mangala hit by late hijack attempt from Serie A as transfer result emerges
Orel Mangala’s move to Everton has been subject to a late hijack attempt to Fiorentina, according to Sacha Tavolieri.
The Belgian journalist reported via X on 29 August that the Lyon man is still on his way to Everton as the approach from Serie A has been averted.
Mangala will join from John Textor’s Lyon on a straight season-long loan deal and the move should soon be confirmed.
And the club could still add another after the former Nottingham Forest man [Alan Myers, 29 August], with Neal Maupay close to joining Marseille [The Athletic, 29 August].
Everton see off Fiorentina to sign Lyon ace on loan
The Toffees transfer window looked to be winding down to a quiet end with more chances of late departures than more arrivals before an explosion of links with Lyon.
Textor’s recently denied [Reuters, 25 August] reports that the entire squad at the Ligue 1 side was on the transfer list but there appears to be an extremely fluid situation that is now set to benefit Sean Dyche.
The Everton boss has been looking for another central midfielder to cover for Amadou Onana’s exit to Aston Villa for most of the summer, with the Belgian’s departure long-expected.
Tim Ireogbunam has made a positive start to life at Goodison Park despite the dismal beginning to the Premier League campaign, but Andre Gomes also leaving has left Dyche short of numbers.
His long-term favourite target was Kalvin Phillips from Manchester City but despite talks looking like they might be leading to a deal [The Times, 13 August] he ended up joining Ipswich on loan, closely followed by a back-up target in Napoli’s Jens Cajuste.
So it certainly comes as a boost that the Toffees look set to fill that gap in the squad as the hours tick down towards the deadline and, as it stands, have seen off competition from Europe.
In other Everton news, a “huge blow” could be on the way before the deadline as multiple league giants want a Toffees signing.
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