The £17.5m signing that could strengthen Everton's attack and defence at the same timeplaceholder image
The £17.5m signing that could strengthen Everton's attack and defence at the same time | AFP via Getty Images
Everton have been linked with a £18m-rated La Liga star - but will they sign him in January, and what kind of difference might he make?
Everton look set to head into January in possession of a solid league position and a reasonable comfortable buffer between themselves and the relegation zone – but there’s little question that they remain a club which can improve upon its squad, and which needs additional depth and quality in several areas. Full-back is one of them.
Jake O’Brien has filled in rather well on the right side of David Moyes’ back four but is no natural in that role, and behind him are Séamus Coleman, who is getting rather long in the tooth, and the perennially injured Nathan Patterson. It’s no great surprise, then, that Everton have been linked once more with a supposed summer transfer target who could offer a bit of dynamism down the right side – Sevilla’s Juanlu Sánchez.
But is the Spaniard likely to be available this January, are the reports of Everton’s interest reliable, and what would he bring to the Hill Dickinson Stadium if he does move?
Why Everton may be interested in Juanlu Sánchez
For a team that plays a relatively direct brand of football, Juanlu is certainly likely to be a natural fit. An attacking wing-back who looks for opportunities to attack wider areas and rarely settles into midfield in possession, the 22-year-old isn’t noted as a first-rate passer of the ball and there are some questions over his positional acuity, but he has the ability to stretch defences and the willingness to run at opposing players.
A strong dribbler with respectable pace and the knack of finding and creating room down the wing, Juanlu doesn’t set up goals in enormous quantities (he produced four assists last season in La Liga) and doesn’t usually look to hit the byline for crossing opportunities, but is instead excellent at teeing up counter-attacks and supporting fast breaks downfield – without compromising on his defensive output.
A willing tackler who makes plenty of stops without giving away many fouls (less than one per match on average last season), Juanlu could perhaps handle fast wingers running at him a little better but otherwise gives very little away and wins the ball back with regularity, averaging four turnovers per game in 2025/26 so far.
In short, he’s a fine all-round winger who has some room to develop in a handful of specific areas but who has the years ahead of him to do so – and who should suit a team looking for a strong defender who can help to make quick attacking moves possible. That certainly sounds like Everton, a team who currently have to play a natural centre-back in the same role.
Juanlu looks like a logical target, but that doesn’t guarantee that the stories are true given how many inaccurate rumours float around as we get closer to a transfer window. So how close are these reports to reality, and what are the chances that Moyes gets his man?
Will Everton sign Juanlu in the January transfer window?
The story seems to have resurfaced largely due to a report in Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, who note that Everton are one of several Premier League sides monitoring the Sevilla man, along with Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.
Mundo Deportivo, as it happens, don’t claim to have an inside track on Everton’s interest, simply stating that it is “being reported” that there is interest there – without citing their sources, which makes it hard to know if the rumour has its genesis with a reliable source or whether it’s simply being repeated without a firm foundation.
Everton have been linked with Juanlu before. They were one of several teams said to be keen on him over the summer, with Wolverhampton Wanderers apparently being turned down by the player after a bid was accepted by Sevilla. Everton don’t seem to have made a bid of their own, but there is at least passing evidence of sincere long-term interest.
That doesn’t mean that Everton continue to track the player, of course, and their name is missing from Gazzetta dello Sport’s own story on Juanlu’s future, which suggests that Napoli have the right-back on their own shortlist. Clearly, if the Toffees are in the bidding, there is likely to be some level of competition.
Financially, at least, a move is unlikely to be too challenging to pull off. Mundo Deportivo claim that it will take a bid of around €20m (£17.5m) to persuade Sevilla to sell, which shouldn’t be too onerous for Everton and which also fairly reflects the Spanish side’s difficult financial position.
All told, this is a perfectly plausible story, but one which isn’t well corroborated as yet – and which may not come to fruition simply because other teams muscle their way in front of Everton. One to watch, but not a sure thing by any stretch.
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