Everton 'won't give up' on signing £45m midfielder at Goodison Park | OneFootball

Everton have been ‘in touch' with Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher for longer than their potential competition, journalist Dean Jones has exclusively told GIVEMESPORT.

Gallagher’s opportunities in west London with Chelsea’s bloated squad could be limited, meaning the midfielder could be given a lease of life elsewhere.

Everton transfer news – Conor Gallagher

With all the summer incomings, there is likely to be a litany of names out of the door in exchange.

According to the Evening Standard, Gallagher is among those.

In order to balance the books and comply with Financial Fair Play regulations, it should be no surprise Todd Bohely and co have amalgamated a long list of potential departures.

Back in January, Sky Sports claimed that Everton were in talks with Gallagher and that the club were willing to pay £40m + an additional £5m to sign the England midfielder, with MailOnline claiming that a bid was accepted.

Gallagher opted to remain and fight for his place in the Chelsea midfield but has now been mooted with a switch away.

Not only are Everton in contention but the likes of Liverpool, Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton and Aston Villa are in with a shout of winning the race, per Sports Lens.

West Ham United, reported by Sky Sports, are also harbouring interest in the Chelsea midfield man amid speculation of ending his long stint at Chelsea with some loan spells wedged in between.

What did Dean Jones say about Everton and Conor Gallagher?

Jones claimed Gallagher is heavily invested in retaining his spot at the London club but out of all the potential suitors for the England midfielder, Everton have shown their interest for the longest time.

Speaking exclusively to GIVEMESPORT, he said: “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.

“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 eleven.

“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?”

Why have Everton identified Conor Gallagher?

On face value, Gallagher’s Fbref statistics look great, and they certainly attest to why so many clubs in the top flight are interested.

Although Chelsea endured a turgid 2022/23 campaign, Gallagher completed the ninth-highest number of minutes in the squad with 1,616, which has highlighted how important he has been.

Per 90, he made 2.58 tackles and 1.31 interceptions and was in the top 4% of position peers in Europe’s top five leagues for blocks per 90 (1.92).

He has also impressed in an offensive sense, too.

Over the last 365 days, he made 3.32 touches in the attacking penalty area, received 6.09 progressive passes and boasted a healthy 1.73 shots per 90 which shows he can threatening in the final third.

While he has enjoyed a somewhat successful career at Chelsea, his pure brilliance also shone through during his loan stints away at less established clubs, notably Crystal Palace.

Maybe a club with less expectation pressure would be the perfect environment for Gallagher to prove his worth in the Premier League, especially being on the fringes of becoming a regular in the England set-up, too.