Toffees boss Ronald Koeman faces an extremely challenging summer ahead of him, as he plans for the possibility of life without Romelu Lukaku at Goodison Park.
Chelsea and Manchester United are leading the race to sign the Belgian, according to the Evening Standard, and if he does eventually leave Merseyside for pastures new, Koeman will have to replace the powerful striker with someone who possesses similar attributes to the 24-year-old.
With this in mind, the Dutchman should consider signing Villarreal striker Cédric Bakambu, who has recently been linked with a move to the Blues’ Premier League rivals West Ham, according to the Telegraph.
The 26-year-old enjoyed a successful campaign with the Yellow Submarines in La Liga last term, scoring 11 league goals.
The Congolese hitman demonstrated his blistering pace on a consistent basis, whilst displaying his cool nature when presented with a goalscoring opportunity.
Standing at 6ft tall, and powerfully built, Bakambu possesses all of the physical attributes, and raw talent, to be a suitable replacement for Lukaku at Goodison Park, and would surely develop the more intricate sides of his game under Koeman’s tutelage.
Bakambu is still under contract with Villarreal until the summer of 2020, so it will take a fairly substantial offer from Everton to tempt the Spanish side into selling.
For context, the Hammers had a £22 million bid for the 26-year-old rejected yesterday, so in order for the Toffees to prise him away from the Estadio de la Ceramica, they will surely have to make an offer closer to £30 million than 20.
With the Merseyside outfit’s newly-found financial muscle though
, they should have no problem in meeting that kind of valuation.
And if Koeman manages to bring Bakambu to Goodison Park, it could turn out to be a signing of real significance for Everton.