Everton could reluctantly accept a bid of £20 million for Alex Iwobi as Premier League rivals Fulham close in on the former Arsenal man before this week’s transfer deadline. 

Eyebrows may have been raised by reports suggesting that Fulham have headhunted a player who has largely underwhelmed since joining Everton for a fee of up to £34 million in the summer of 2019.

But, then again, Marco Silva’s side have made a bit of a name for themselves when it comes to kick-starting the careers of players in need of a fresh start in the Premier League. Bernd Leno and Andreas Pereira have arguably played the best football of their career at Craven Cottage. Willian, meanwhile, rolled back the years during a dazzling campaign in 2022/23.

At a reported £20 million, however, Alex Iwobi will still find himself under pressure to live up to a hefty price-tag. A feeling he knows well. The Daily Mail report that Fulham are now ‘close’ to agreeing a deal with Everton after talks on Wednesday night.

Fulham in talks to sign Alex Iwobi from Everton

The Toffees are reportedly ‘reluctant’ to lose the Nigeria international. But with just one year left on his contract, a £20 million offer feels too good to resist. What’s more, with Jack Harrison and Arnaut Danjuma through the door already, Everton look well-placed to adapt to life without a player who has been utilised more often than not as a wide player under Dyche.

It remains to be seen what sort of a role Silva envisages for Iwobi at Fulham. He will be the second highly-versatile player to join the Cottagers this week, after the two-footed former Leicester City full-back Timothy Castagne. Fulham are also in talks to bring in Sevilla forward Lucas Ocampos.

Brazilian defender Juninho Capixaba is on the radar too.

Iwobi, meanwhile, was not in the Everton squad for Wednesday’s 2-1 EFL Cup win at Doncaster Rovers. Though Dyche would not confirm at full-time whether Iwobi was merely rested. Or instead left out as his negotiations enter the final stages.

Silva, interestingly, was the Everton manager when Iwobi joined from Arsenal. A West London move will see him reunite with a coach who called him a ‘fantastic signing’ at the time.