The October international break may now be over, but with January and the re-opening of the transfer window continuing to edge nearer, there are still some interesting player links being made on the speculation rumour mill, and one of the latest stories of note suggests that English Premier League side Everton are now taking a closer look at AC Milan midfielder Samuel Chukwueze.
The 25 year old former Villarreal right winger came through the La Liga sides youth ranks, progressing through their B team, and then went on to feature 155 times in the Spanish league for them scoring 21 times. This attracted the attention of the Rossoneri who took him to Milan in the summer of 2023, and the 41 capped Nigerian international had a good first season, featuring pretty regularly for them – both as a starter and as a substitute.
If the rumour mill is to be believed, Chukwueze has been on Everton’s radar for a number of windows and given that they have been battling to avoid relegation over the past few seasons, it appears that they think his attacking threat could make a telling difference at the top of the pitch as they look to become more consistent in front of the opposition’s goal.
The winger may well be more attractive to Everton at the turn of the New Year owing to how he seems to have fallen out of favour in the 2024/25 campaign under gaffer Paolo Fonseca, although the player has featured eight times this season, six of his eight showings have been off the substitutes bench.
But if AC Milan are interested in moving him on, his contract still runs until the summer of 2028, so he likely would not be a cheap option for the Merseyside club and that would naturally be a complication to a deal being done before deadline day.
That is before potential takeover complications could also get in the way, as the Goodison Park outfit’s owner Farhad Moshiri is still attempting to sell his 94/1% shareholding in the club, and after a number of other possible deals have fallen down in recent months, discussions are ongoing with The Friedkin Group.
It is reported that discussions are at an advanced stage, and that it is just the final touches on the deal that need to be concluded before it is official. It is expected that this should happen ahead of the January window, and if it does they are willing to back manager Sean Dyche heavily in the market to turn their form around.
If that happens, Chukwueze is more likely to happen if Everton’s interest is true. Without a takeover though, it feels like a very unlikely proposition.
