Everton: Anthony Elanga can finally fill Gordon void
Everton may have finally found Anthony Gordon’s successor, with the Toffees interested in Manchester United winger Anthony Elanga.
Everton latest transfer news – Anthony Elanga price tag revealed
After narrowly avoiding relegation from the Premier League for the second straight season, the blue side of Mersey are looking to significantly strengthen the side ahead of what will be Sean Dyche’s first full season at the club.
Recently relegated Leeds United are reportedly set to be raided by Everton, with FootballTransfers revealing that talks are underway over signing both Jack Harrison and Wilfried Gnonto from the Whites.
The two aren’t the only wingers that Dyche’s side is interested in, though, with United’s Elanga also on their radar.
Having failed to sign the 21-year-old on loan in January, it seems Everton are once again pursuing him, reports the Liverpool ECHO, who claim that he will be available for as little at £10m.
How does Anthony Elanga compare to Anthony Gordon?
With a talent of Elanga’s calibre on the horizon, the Toffees could have finally found a worthy replacement for Gordon following his departure to Newcastle United in January.
In the Sweden international, Dyche may have found an attacker who could replicate the level of output that Gordon brought to the team, with the mooted transfer target receiving some illustrious praise in the past.
Indeed, the United academy graduate has been favourably compared to Cristiano Ronaldo by former West Ham United defender Anton Ferdinand – speaking on talkSPORT’s Kick-Off show, he said:
“He looks like one of the only young players who actually tapped into Ronaldo.
“His movement was Ronaldo-esque, when Ronaldo was younger.”
Elanga plays a very similar style to the Newcastle dynamo, with the two taking on an opposition defender and successfully dribbling past them at a similar rate.
Elanga successfully dribbled past opposition defenders with 33.3% of his attempts, while Gordon put up the exact same number following his move to the Magpies in January.
Both wingers love to carry the ball forward, with the United gem doing so 12 times in limited appearances this year, while Gordon did so 48 times for both the Toffees and Newcastle throughout the campaign.
The two also put up very similar numbers in terms of creativity, with Elanga successfully completing 76% of his passes for United during his 16 league appearances, while Gordon completed 75.1% himself for Everton before he departed for St James’ Park.
Offensively, the Toffees really struggled last season, with only Wolverhampton Wanderers scoring less than their 34 goals in the Premier League, and Gordon’s departure in January only made things worse, so adding a “Ronaldo-esque” talent like Elanga to finally fill the hole he left would do wonders to Dyche’s chances of avoiding another relegation battle next season.
