Everton

Everton

Premier League • England

Billionaire-owned club plotting major January transfer for senior Everton player

Dominic Calvert-Lewin Everton

Fulham boss Marco Silva is eyeing a shock January reunion with senior Everton player Abdoulaye Doucoure, according to a recent report. 

Silva has allegedly been plotting a move to bring the midfielder to Craven Cottage for months now, but that interest has now been officially confirmed.

The report comes from Sky Sportswho announced earlier on Wednesday that Fulham hold a genuine interest in signing the 29-year-old in the winter window.

It’s no secret that Silva is a big admirer of Doucoure, who played under him at Watford and who he attempted to sign at Everton, before the deal was eventually completed nine months after he was sacked.

Now, as he looks to add strength to his Fulham midfield, it seems there is a genuine chance of a move happening after the France-born player has struggled for minutes at Goodison Park this season.

The Cottagers have enjoyed an excellent start to their Premier League campaign, currently sitting in ninth place after picking up some impressive results.

Fulham have been relying on the likes of Joao Palhinha and Tom Cairney in the middle of the park, who at times have performed well. But now it seems Silva wants to add some more Premier League experience to his team.

After signing for Everton on a £22m deal from Watford in 2020, Doucoure has made a total of 76 appearances across all competitions for the Toffees, scoring five goals and making seven assists.

Intermittent form for Doucoure at Everton

Doucoure has enjoyed some fine form at times, playing particularly well under Carlo Ancelotti and at the beginning of Rafa Benitez’s short stint on the blue half of Merseyside.

Six months into Ancelotti’s reign at Goodison, the Italian was very vocal on how impressed he was with the midfielder.

In a press conference, he said: “When we started to talk about the transfer window [after I arrived], Doucoure was on the list of the club.

“He was not on my list, but we talked together and we both agreed to sign him.

“I think it was, after six months, a really fantastic signing because Doucoure is playing really well.

“He doesn’t show problems with his physical condition. He has played a lot of games but he is still really good, fresh, and has no problems at all.”

This is high praise indeed from one of the world’s best managers.

However, since Lampard’s arrival, Doucoure has played infrequently and when he’s got an opportunity, has often struggled on the pitch.

Indeed, the midfielder has made just one start in the Premier League this season, and most recently put in a dismal performance in Everton’s 4-1 defeat to Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup.

Given his poor run of form, Doucoure has fallen behind the likes of Amadou Onana, Alex Iwobi, Idrissa Gana Gueye and James Garner in the pecking order.

However, despite this, Silva clearly still thinks Doucoure could be a good addition to the Fulham squad.

The former Watford-player’s contract is set to expire at the end of the season, so the Toffees may want to sell the Mali international sooner rather than later to recoup some of their £22m transfer fee.

However, after failing to impress this season, Evertonians probably won’t be too disappointed.

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