Football365
·29 January 2023
Football365
·29 January 2023
Everton are being linked with a January move for Tottenham Hotspur winger Lucas Moura, while Crystal Palace and Southampton are also interested, according to reports.
The Toffees recently missed out on Arnaut Danjuma, who signed for Spurs on a loan-to-buy agreement in a last-minute twist, despite having a deal ‘done’ for him.
Soon-to-be new Everton manager Sean Dyche is now targeting Lucas as an alternative option, but his current £150,000 per week wage may prove to be a sticking point.
The Blues have endured a horrific start to the season, with them currently sitting joint-bottom of the table after winning just three of their opening 20 matches.
Everton have just sold Anthony Gordon to Newcastle United, which is expected to give them an extra £40m to play with in the final few days of the window.
As a result, Dyche is looking to make several attacking additions before the transfer window slams shut on Tuesday and Lucas would give him an excellent option.
According to journalist Alan Nixon’s update on Patreon, Everton, Crystal Palace and Southampton are in pursuit of the Brazilian for a deal before the end of the winter transfer window.
Since joining Tottenham in 2017, the 30-year-old has been an important player for the London club at times, despite falling down the pecking order recently.
In 213 appearances across all competitions, Lucas has netted 38 times for Spurs, as well as contributing 27 assists, giving him an average of 0.31 goal contributions per match.
He has been key to Tottenham’s recent success too, in particular being a key player in the Mauricio Pochettino side that reached the Champions League final in 2019.
However, the winger is set to become a free agent in the summer and has fallen out of favour with Antonio Conte, playing just 314 minutes of football this season.
Lucas also has more competition to contend with after the arrival of Danjuma, while he was already behind the likes of Dejan Kulusevski, Richarlison and Heung-min Son in the pecking order.
Therefore, a late January departure isn’t out of the question, but the big issue for Everton is Lucas’ huge wage demands, with him currently earning £150,000 per week at Spurs.
Everton are also looking into signing Coventry City striker Viktor Gyokeres, according to TEAMtalk.
Dyche has already missed out on his first-choice centre-forward target – Iliman Ndiaye – and is now interested in signing the Swede as an alternative.
These links will come as a boost to Evertonians, with it being glaringly obvious that their current attack is nowhere near good enough.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin has once again struggled to maintain fitness this season, while summer signing Neal Maupay has scored just one goal.
As for their wingers, Demarai Gray has shown flashes of brilliance, but Dwight McNeil has left a lot to be desired, while Andros Townsend has yet to feature due to injury. Similarly, Gordon has been poor, so Blues fans won’t be too disappointed to see the back of him.
Lucas would arguably provide Dyche with an instant upgrade on Gordon and would likely go straight into his starting XI if Everton can get a deal over the line.
As mentioned though, while Lucas’ transfer fee should be relatively small, his mega-wages could prove to be an issue. Therefore, they will have to try and negotiate a reduced package for the Brazilian and hope he accepts their proposal.