Everton to sacrifice’ key player in order to keep £70m-rated star on the books after agreeing to Join Brighton
Everton have some big decisions to make on the summer transfer window before the new season starts.
Euro 2024 is now approaching its final round of group stage action as the teams throw everything they have at progressing into the next round. Everton have three players representing their countries out in Germany this summer and Oleksandr Zinchenko was the latest Toffee to celebrate a positive performance.
Ukraine edged their way to a hard-earned 2-1 win over Slovakia on Friday to move up to second in their group. Meanwhile, Jordan Pickford was forced to settle for a frustrating 1-1 draw in England’s latest match against Denmark, and Amadou Onana is preparing to bounce back with Belgium after a shock defeat to Slovakia in their opening game.
The Belgians will take on Romania this weekend and all eyes will be on their performance as they look to bank their first points of the tournament. That isn’t the only reason Onana has found his name in the headlines, though. Football Insider has reported that Everton are ‘expected to sell’ the 22-year-old midfielder this summer in a bid effort to keep hold of star defender Jarrad Branthwaite.
The Blues are reportedly ‘willing to sacrifice’ Onana, despite him being a key player during their 2023/24 season, in order to keep within the Premier League’s profit and sustainability (PSR) regulations.
Football Insider also reported last month that Everton will need to offload at least one of their ‘big stars’ before they submit their accounts at the end of the month. Onana arrived at Goodison Park in 2022 for a reported £33.5 million and the Merseyside outfit are looking to make a profit on a potential sale.
Amid interest from Arsenal, who have been relentlessly searching for a solid new midfield signing, iNews reported that Everton were looking to almost double their spending on Onana. During the January window, the Blues slapped a £60 million price tag on the Belgian, who is under contract at Goodison Park until 2027.
Arsenal aren’t alone in their interest either, as Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain are both keen on the 22-year-old as well. The aim is for Everton to fend off the increasing interest in Branthwaite, who turned a lot of heads with his breakthrough season after returning from loan. The centre-back started all but three Premier League matches last campaign, and even contributed three goals along the way — one being during the statement 2-0 win over Liverpool at Anfield.
Branthwaite is on the radar of a number of clubs, with the main team in the running being Manchester United. Everton have already rejected a bid from their Premier League rivals after an offer of £35 million plus an extra £8 million in add-ons was deemed far too low. United are reportedly asking for Everton to accept a ‘realistic’ offer for Branthwaite but the Toffees are demanding in the region of £70 million for their star defender.
