Since he made his first-team debut for his boyhood club Derby County, Will Hughes has always found himself under a number of big clubs’ watchlist. It is a bit astonishing to see the Rams still managing to hold onto their priced asset but now that he is 21, Derby might not be able to do that any longer.
The Sun claims that Hughes’ current deal at Pride Park expires in 2018 and the East Midlands club are keen for Hughes to commit his long-term future. The Sun also claims that Ronald Koeman is a fan of the Derby county starlet and is looking to test Derby’s resilience with a £15m bid in January.
The talented 21-year-old Englishman has rediscovered his form after a missing most of the last season with an injury, as the Rams push up the table to get back into the promotion shake-up. Hughes is a key player for the Rams and it will be a major blow to them if the English under-21 international leaves the promotion hopefuls in mid-season. However, with Hughes not signing a contract extension, a £15m bid might prove to be too good to turn down.
Will Hughes burst onto the scene with his boyhood club Derby a long time back and has grown as a player over the years. For a player who is just 21 years of age, 170 first team appearances for a club like Derby County is highly impressive. His last season was severely injury-plagued but the youngster showed good character to come back to his best after that. The Rams have been regularly making the top six of the Championship over the years but have failed to make it to the Premier League through playoffs.
A player of Hughes’ calibre deserves to play in the Premier League and could have done that much earlier if not for his poor luck with injuries which held back his growth. In some ways, staying one or two more years in the championship acted as a blessing for him as he could get regular first-team football at Pride Park.
He looks ready for a big step up is his career now and Everton will not regret the decision of bringing him at Goodison Park. You will rarely come across English players with better technique when compared to the 21-year-old. The midfielder is blessed with a brilliant ball-control. Predominantly left-footed, Hughes’ passing in top-notch. His passing accuracy this season has been 82.8% while it is also evident from his 1.5 key passes every game that he can pick out key passes on a regular basis.
The youngster is primarily a number eight but can also play as a deep-lying playmaker. He would be a welcome addition at Goodison Park who are in a dire need for midfield reinforcements. Gareth Barry is not getting any younger whereas James McCarthy has struggled for both fitness and form. Tom Cleverley is clearly not in Koeman’s plans which mean that Idrissa Gueye needs a partner badly and Hughes could be exactly that.
