Turkish news outlets have reported upon Everton’s growing interest in Beşiktaş J.K. midfielder, Oğuzhan Özyakup. The Toffees are ready to embark on another shopping spree in the summer transfer window and the 25-year-old might just be at the top of their list.
Özyakup is a product of the Arsenal academy and was once earmarked to be the longtime replacement of Cesc Fabregas. Unfortunately, the Turkish international could not break into the demands of top-flight English football and had to make the switch to his home country.
He has been prolific for Besiktas this season with 7 assists in as many as 35 games. Once being sold off for a meagre £400,000 fee, Ozyakup is expected to be worth in the 8 figure bracket.
The 25-year-old has racked up over 200 appearances for the Black Eagles but were restricted to only two for the Gunners senior team under Arsene Wenger. He has set the Super Lig on fire with his incredible abilities on the ball. He has been capped for the Turkish national team 30 times and is one of the key successors of captain, Arda Turan.
Özyakup has been a key figure in the Besiktas squad over the past 6 seasons and has helped them to 2 Super Lig titles. He quite deservedly earned himself the captain’s armband earlier in the season and led the team to the first spot finish in the Champions League group stage this season, over teams like FC Porto, RB Leipzig and AS Monaco.
He could be the answer to Sam Allardyce’s creative problems in the Toffees midfield and formulate a lucrative partnership with his former teammate, Cenk Tosun. The latter has already adjusted to life in England’s top-flight and could replicate the same partnership at Goodison if given the opportunity.
There is also a slim chance of Wayne Rooney departing for greener pastures when this season comes to an end. Reports came out earlier hinting at a probable club exit for the 32-year-old right along with ‘Big Sam’.
If the former Manchester United striker leaves, Ozyakup could be an ideal replacement for the attacking midfield role. He certainly will have to hash out a certain adjust period with Gylfi Sigurdsson also in the squad but there is no reason for the move to not work.
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Whoever takes charge next season or even Allardyce for that matter, will require competent options in the squad in order to place a formidable challenge for one of the European qualification spots.
