Kurt Zouma seems to be a man on a mission. The on-loan Chelsea defender has had an impressive outing at Everton following his late summer move. It was initially expected that Zouma would play second fiddle to the partnership of Michael Keane and summer recruit, Yerry Mina. However, the Frenchman has made the centre back position his own with 23 starts in the Premier League.
In a season where Everton had nothing substantial to cheer about, Kurt Zouma has emerged as a sparkling diamond. The 6ft 3inch defender has grabbed attention from all over through his rock-solid and determined performances in Marco Silva’s backline.
Everton, on the contrary, had a fairly average season. The Merseyside club are placed 9th in the Premier League and are yet to win a game since the turn of the year. Their FA Cup hopes ended somewhat shockingly in the 4th round of the competition at the hands of relegation-threatened Championship side, Millwall.
One striking thing, however, is Everton’s visibly improved defence throughout the season. Despite the massive change, the Toffees have managed only to concede 39 goals in the Premier League. Going by the figures there are only six other Premier League teams which have conceded more goals than Everton this season.
Everton would hopefully have the chance at the end of the season to make Zouma’s move to Goodison Park permanent. The young and versatile defender would surely be in for more growth and maturity if he chooses to prolong his stay in Liverpool.
Zouma himself is aware of the progress he has made at Everton as a defender. Speaking to Everton’s official website, Zouma has thrown light on his improved abilities to have the ball at feet under pressure.
Zouma has been quoted saying (via Evertonfc.com), “I have improved, a lot.
“A lot. I am very confident with the ball now and tactically I feel I know what I need to do”
Let’s not forget that Zouma is a Chelsea player at the end of the day. The Blues certainly do exercise the right to call back Zouma from his loan spell.
The upcoming summer transfer window could see Chelsea stars like Gary Cahill and David Luiz pull down the curtain on their Stamford Bridge career. The defensive duo has entered the final few months of their contracts with Chelsea. It was suggested in January that David Luiz would be offered a contract extension. Going by the present situation a contract extension looks far from happening for the Brazilian centre back.
Taking into account how shaky things are at Chelsea currently, it would not be fair to rule out a Kurt Zouma return to Stamford Bridge in the coming summer.
