Pape Gueye in an Everton shirt ahead of Hill Dickinson
Pape Gueye in an Everton shirt ahead of Hill Dickinson
The Toffees came into the summer transfer window with some clear priorities, as one of them were to add new midfielders.
Idrissa Gana Gueye's departure meant that a replacement was needed, and the Blues acted fast to secure the services of Hayden Hackney from Middlesbrough.
David Moyes then welcomed Christian Norgaard to his squad, but there were still rumours linking the club to Gueye.
The Villarreal ace had plenty of clubs interested in his signature in the summer, after impressing in North America at the World Cup.
However, Everton always looked like the most likely destination for Gueye, but could the deal happen in January instead?
Everton learn what's needed to seal Pape Gueye
While it was reported in July that Everton reached an agreement to sign Gueye, it later came out that the Toffees didn't make an official bid to sign him.
However, it remained crystal clear that the Blues were still keen on the 27-year-old, who scored twice for Senegal at the World Cup.
The 6'2" midfielder has three goals in 10 La Liga matches for Villarreal so far this season, and has also impressed in the Champions League, too.
According to Africa Foot, Al Ahli and Everton were both keen on Gueye in the summer.
It's said that the Toffees were ready to pay £23.3million for the Senegal international.
However, the Yellow Submarine reportedly value their star midfielder at £33.3m, so Angus Kinnear and Co. would need an extra £10m ready to get the deal over the line.
If Everton wanted to make a move in January, the player could be open to a move to Hill Dickinson, as he surely is fully aware of the club's interest in him.
Why Gueye offers something that David Moyes doesn't have
Everton's 3-1 Carabao Cup fourth-round win over Newcastle United showed the level of quality of Moyes' current midfielders.
James Garner and Hackney were both on the scoresheet, while Harrison Armstrong came off the bench.
However, it seems like Moyes lacks a traditional hard-tackling defensive midfielder.
Yes, Norgaard is now with Everton, but he was always a short-term addition, and there needs to be a younger recruit to balance the chemistry in the middle of the park for the long term.
Gueye would offer exactly that; only he has an eye for goal, too.