Jean Philippe Mateta, the 20-year-old French striker has been linked with a move to Everton. Mateta is plying his trade for French heavyweight Lyon. However, he spent a year on loan with second division French outfit Le Havre last season where he was prolific for them as he managed 19 goals. The Toffees are looking for a new beginning under their new manager Marco Silva and there will be a lot of expectations from him in the upcoming season.
Mateta has graduated from Lyon reserve side, however, he has failed to break into the senior team as he has made just 2 appearances for them. However, after an impressive spell with the Ligue 2 outfit, Lyon will surely be keeping an eye on the youngster before selling him to a Premier League club.
Toffees had a stop-start season last term and they were hovering around the relegation zone initially under Ronald Koeman. They went on to sack their highly-rated manager and brought in the man for crisis-Sam Allardyce who guided them to the 8th spot. However, the fans and board were not impressed with his defensive and unattractive gameplay and as a result, he was sacked.
The Toffees secured the signing of Cenk Tosun in the January transfer window and the Turkish striker has impressed in his short spell. Apart from him, Oumar Niasse and Dominic Calvert Lewin are other able young options Marco Silva will have at his disposal, so it remains to be seen whether they will move in for Mateta in the summer transfer market.
The Frenchman is known for his strength and speed and his aerial ability is also top notch. However, he can improve his finishing skills further. He has failed to break into Lyon’s senior team and it will be tough for the forward to get going in the Premier League straight away.
Apart from the Merseyside club, Newcastle United, West Ham United and Leicester City are said to be interested in the striker and it will be exciting to see who will win the race for the striker’s signature.
The Toffees have other departments to improve upon and a striker at the moment is not an absolute necessity for them. With 3 able options like Tosun, Niasse and Calvert Lewin already fighting for a start, the signing of Mateta won’t make much sense as he will have to bide his time on the bench before he gets anywhere close to first team opportunities.
