As reported by Kicker, Jochen Schneider has confirmed that Everton had rejected Schalke’s approach to sign Jonjoe Kenny. The Schalke sporting director revealed that his club was keen on signing the right-back for another year on loan. But, the move had been blocked by Everton, who seem keen on having Kenny back at the club in the upcoming season.
Jonjoe Kenny’s success at Schalke this season
Kenny initially joined Schalke last summer, in a season-long loan deal. The Liverpool-born defender was brought in as an alternative for the often injured duo of Daniel Caligiuri and Alessandro Schopf. And the move has worked out quite well for both the parties, with the player emerging as one of the rising stars in the Bundesliga this past season.
Indeed, Kenny had made 31 appearances in the league, scoring two goals and registering three assists. His pace and athleticism have tuned in well with David Wagner’s tactical setup at Schalke, although the club did end the 2019/20 quite badly.
One of the key reasons behind Kenny’s success in the Bundesliga was his tenacious nature. The defender notably averaged 2.4 tackles per game with a success rate of 66%. His tally of 2.4 clearances and 0.8 interceptions per game are also indicative of the Englishman’s defensively astute nature that added a new dimension to the Schalke backline.
Why Kenny could be useful for Everton next season
Everton certainly haven’t enjoyed the best of seasons in the corresponding campaign. But under the leadership of Carlo Ancelotti, the Merseyside giants have shown a lot of promise and ambition, notably attracting the interest of several star players across Europe.
There are, however, certain areas where the club simply cannot afford to splash money, especially given the ongoing Coronavirus crisis and the right-back department could be one of them.
At the moment, the Toffees have two options in the said position in Seamus Coleman and Djibril Sidibe. The former is slowly nearing the final phase of his career while Sidibe is facing an uncertain future at the club, with his loan contract from AS Monaco set to expire soon. That’s where the emergence of Kenny could be handy for Everton.
The 23-year-old could provide Ancelotti with a proper alternative at right-back. If his performances at Schalke were anything to go by, it is quite clear that Kenny is ready to shine at the highest level of football. But more importantly, his tenacious and hard-working nature, combined with his pace, should make him an ideal fit for the physically astute nature of the Premier League as the defender looks to make a breakthrough at Merseyside next season.
Stat courtesy: Whoscored
