AS Roma and Everton already appear tangled in multiple transfers not so long after the Friedkin Group took control of the Merseyside club.
There’s other examples to look to for how the pair could work on transfers, and perhaps the most appropriate is Watford and Udinese, where the Pozzo family conducted endless business between the clubs whilst in ownership of both.
Whilst claims over Everton signing Wesley Franca and then loaning him to Roma appear to have been a figment of Italian imagination, or hope from Roma’s local media, claims about Evan Ferguson potentially going from Brighton to the Serie A Club and then eventually to the Toffees make more sense.
Over in France, there’s another player placed between the pair.
That’s Lens midfielder Neil El Aynaoui, as reported by [La Voix du Nord](https://journal.lavoixdunord.fr/lavoixdessports#VDN/VDS/web,2025-07-14,42ARTOIS|VDS,2025-07-14,42ARTOIS,1|1) newspaper.
The 24-year-old has been with Lens since moving from Nancy in 2023. He played 26 matches last season and scored eight goals. El Aynaoui missed the start of the campaign due to a knee injury, out with the same issue at the end of the previous season, so that’s obviously something Everton would want to look into.
According to the report, Roma have been pushing ahead for a deal and Everton presented their plans to the player over the weekend.
There’s no clarity on what that precisely means, whether the sibling clubs are competing or working together. Obviously the former would appear unlikely.
One to keep an eye on but it doesn’t appear to be anything serious at this stage, and Lens’ €30m asking price looks inflated.