In a recent interview with Football Insider, former West Ham United player Frank McAvennie tipped Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin to join Newcastle United instead of Arsenal this summer. McAvennie said,
“I’m not sure why you would go to Arsenal instead of Newcastle.
“They won’t be far off each other soon and only one of those clubs is on the up in my opinion.
“I think he’s (Calvert-Lewin) having a stinker if he goes to Arsenal, he has had such a bad season as well.
“So he needs to prove his fitness before thinking about moving on. I think him leaving is nailed on.
“He’s brilliant on his day but he hasn’t had the chance to show it this season.”
Calvert-Lewin’s Growing Frustrations At Goodison Park This Season
Calvert-Lewin is having a hugely frustrating campaign at Merseyside as he has missed a lot of games because of injury. The 25-year-old has featured in 14 matches for the Toffees this season, finding the back of the net on three occasions and grabbing one assist in all competitions.
The 11-time England international has proven himself to be a valuable contributor at times in the final third based on his average of 2.2 shots and 0.6 key passes per game in Premier League football. However, his link-up play has been lackluster in the opposition half, as evidenced by his pass success rate of 64.3% in the top tier of English football (stats via whoscored).
Should Everton Cut Calvert-Lewin Loose This Summer?
Calvert-Lewin is having a difficult campaign with the Toffees but remains a decent finisher in front of the opposition goal. He excels at creating space for himself to get a few strikes in at goal and can even engineer some good openings for his teammates in the attacking end of the field.
At the moment, the Merseyside club simply cannot afford to lose their striker as his value in the transfer market is on the decline. Everton head coach Frank Lampard would be better off keeping hold of him for the time being with the hope that he can reignite his old form in the upcoming campaign.
At 25, Calvert-Lewin is about to enter his prime, so the Merseyside club should not consider cutting him loose during the summer transfer window.