Everton take the lead over Liverpool in signing young talent eager to join the Premier League
Everton are currently leading the race to sign right-back Hector Fort from Barcelona, according to reports. They face competition from Premier League clubs Liverpool and Fulham.
The Toffees want a natural right-back to replace Jake O’Brien, who has been covering that position since David Moyes took over last January. On Wednesday, The Sun said Everton are also interested in a surprise move for Kyle Walker from Burnley, who were recently relegated.
Crystal Palace’s Daniel Munoz is another option, even though he’s been one of their most consistent players in the past two and a half years and might leave this summer.
Liverpool have only one natural right-back, Jeremie Frimpong, as Conor Bradley is still recovering from an ACL injury and Joe Gomez is also injured. Barcelona captain Ronald Araujo joined Liverpool on a season-long loan and can play right-back but might be needed at center-back.
Fulham have signed Spanish players Gonzalo Garcia and Cesar Palacios, who both played under new manager Alvaro Arbeloa at Real Madrid’s Castilla team. They seem interested in signing Spain youth international Fort as well.
Spanish outlet SPORT says Fort, 20, is likely to leave Barcelona soon since manager Hansi Flick told him he’s not in the plans for the coming season. Fort spent last year on loan at Elche, playing 17 games and scoring three times.
Everton are believed to have the best offer lined up if they decide to make Fort their top target. Mundo Deportivo reports the player is excited about a move to the Premier League, though Borussia Dortmund is also interested.
Everton showed interest in Spurs defender Djed Spence, but he looks set to join Inter Milan in Italy, who were also trying to sign Fort. They also spoke to Celtic about Canada star Alistair Johnston but couldn’t agree on a price.
The Scottish Sun says Celtic worry Johnston might be out for a while after being injured in their 5-1 win over Kilmarnock. Celtic manager Martin O’Neill confirmed Moyes personally reached out about Johnston but hopes to keep him.
“I was hoping there wouldn’t be serious interest, but that was unlikely,” O’Neill told Sky Sports Scotland. “We want to build the squad and keep players too, but it’s tough to do both at once. That’s just reality.”