If reports are to be believed, then Everton are the latest club to join the race for Nigerian wonder kid Henry Onyekuru. The Toffees manager has been an admirer of the 19-year-old and could land him in the summer.
Currently playing in the Belgian league, Onyekuru is one of the highly-rated wingers across Europe with numerous clubs willing to land him. Everton are reportedly willing to pay something in the region of £7million to get the player.
Everton have had a decent season this campaign, which saw the Toffees getting positive results against easier opponents except for the top six teams, and their chances of taking a lead over Arsenal in the race to secure a ready spot in the Europa League took a big hit as they lost 3-0 to a resilient Chelsea side.
With almost everything in place, the only thing that Everton missed was balls from wide areas. The Toffees have had a huge crisis on the flanks with their best wingers Yannick Bolasie and Aaron Lennon, absent for the most part of the season. It was due to Ross Barkley and Romelu Lukaku that Everton have seen the goals coming in some unlikely situations.
Getting in quality reinforcements this summer is quintessential so that Koeman doesn’t face similar problems next season, especially if they get into Europa League through the qualification stages. And Onyekuru seems the best option in that role now, given how numerous critics think that it is an ideal time the 19-year-old steps up.
Currently at Belgian side KAS Eupen, Celtic have been one of the forerunners in landing him but the club has repeatedly stopped his move away from the club last summer. The Scottish champions, with Brendan Rodgers at the helm, are hot on the heels of the youngster who is scoring nearly every two games from the flanks.
Bolasie isn’t returning until January next year and it is hard to predict how fast will he be in his top form thereafter. And Onyekuru might be his replacement at Merseyside, given Koeman’s preference for young talents.
However, landing him won’t come easy given the paperwork involved in getting him inside the country. Not only will the Toffees have to compete with the numerous clubs, but will also need to get his work permit done within the restricted time. This is where Celtic have the advantage as Scotland goes easy on such cases, but Onyekuru would choose Premier League any day over Celtic.
