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Kurt Zouma is Everton’s number one defensive target this summer, according to Le10sport in France.
The publication claims Everton are poised to abandon interest in Gabriel Magalhaes of Lille in favour of pursuing Zouma, the Chelsea centre-half who spent 2018/19 on loan at Goodison Park.
A director at Bundesliga club Schalke 04 has told Kicker magazine his club is unlikely to reach agreement with Everton over another season-long loan for Jonjoe Kenny.
Right-back Kenny, 23, played 34 games and scored two goals during a successful 2019/20 campaign with Schalke.
And Jochen Schneider said the Bundesliga club “expressed our interest” in striking a similar deal for Kenny next term but “Everton saw it differently and we have to respect that”.
Another German outlet, Bild, claims Everton want to take a player from Schalke in the shape of midfielder Weston McKennie.
USA international McKennie, 21, recently confessed it was his “dream” to play in the Premier League and with Schalke apparently in acute need of cash he could be granted his wish this summer.
Bild reckons Schalke would demand €25m for McKennie and Everton are set for competition from Newcastle United and two more unnamed Premier League clubs for the player’s signature.
Sky Sports says Everton will send scouts to Saturday’s German cup final to monitor Bayer Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey.
Jamaican Bailey, whose team meet Bayern Munich in Berlin, has caught the attention of a host of top clubs following his transfer to Leverkusen in January 2017.
The Bundesliga side will be able to command less than half the €60m they wanted for Bailey prior to the coronavirus pandemic, according to Sky Sports, and representatives from Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool are also expected in Berlin.
Glasgow Live reckons Everton are rivalling Celtic for teenage Gillingham goalkeeper Joe Walsh.
An 18-year-old product of the League One club’s academy, Walsh signed his first professional deal last summer and played three times for Steve Evans’ team in 2019/20.
An ESPN report suggests Chelsea and Manchester City are both eyeing Everton left-back Lucas Digne.
France international Digne is viewed by both clubs as a cheaper alternative to Leicester City’s Ben Chilwell, according to ESPN, albeit it is said Everton would “expect a high fee” for a player they acquired from Barcelona two years ago.
The Daily Mail, meanwhile, reckons two ex-Everton bosses are in contention for the top job at Barcelona should under pressure current incumbent Quique Setien be dismissed at the end of this campaign.
Roberto Martinez, now in charge of Belgium, and Holland manager Ronald Koeman, a former Barcelona player, are both mentioned in connection with the Nou Camp post.
