In a recent interview with Give Me Sport, journalist Ben Jacobs mentioned that Everton are in talks to sign Paris Saint-Germain forward Hugo Ekitike. Jacobs said,
“I think PSG feel like Hugo Ekitke hasn’t worked out.
“And having fought off quite a bit of competition to sign him, with Newcastle in the mix, they are willing to let him go.
“And the Everton links are genuine, initial talks have been held. The structure of that deal is still being discussed, but one possibility is a loan with an option to buy. And PSG are largely looking when they offload to do what’s best for them from the perspective of financial fair play.
“So that obviously means that, where possible, they would like a fee, and they would like a lot of money upfront for that fee.”
Ekitike’s Impressive Rise In French Football
Ekitike had an uneventful loan spell at Paris Saint-Germain last season when he struggled to be consistent with his productivity in the final third. The 21-year-old was involved in 32 matches for PSG in the previous campaign, scoring four goals and picking up four assists in the process across multiple competitions.
The Reims-born talent made most of his appearances off the bench but did well to average 1.4 shots, 0.4 key passes and 0.6 dribbles per 90 minutes in Ligue 1 football. He even distributed the ball well in the final third based on his pass success rate of 82.6% in the French top-flight (stats via whoscored).
What Will Ekitike Add To Everton Boss Sean Dyche’s Team?
Ekitike is proficient at finding a yard of space for himself to get a few strikes in on-target. He can engineer the odd chance for his teammates up top and can make a few intelligent runs with the ball in the opponent’s half. However, the French whizkid is still quite raw and would need time to prove his worth at the highest level.
Still, there is no denying that he would enhance the quality of Everton boss Sean Dyche’s first XI. He has what it takes to rival Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Neal Maupay for a regular starting spot at Goodison Park.
We can expect Ekitike to add more firepower to the Merseyside club‘s frontline and help the Toffees steer clear of the relegation zone in the Premier League this season.