According to a recent report from British publication Liverpool Echo, Everton midfielder Nikola Vlasic and his agent have been pondering a permanent move to CSKA Moscow at the end of the current loan deal which is set to expire at the end of the season.
It is suggested that the Croatian international midfielder’s agent has confirmed that his client’s primary interest would be to permanently stay on at CSKA with Everton already said to be in talks with them about a potential summer transfer.
Nikola Vlasic has expressed his sadness about the flopped Everton transfer but credits most of his failings to the fact that Everton began undergoing a massive managerial transformation a few months into his arrival and this didn’t help his cause.
With 19 games to his name for Everton in all competitions, the Croatian even managed to score a couple of goals and assist yet another one. Despite some decent displays, he never really managed to nail down a starting role in the Everton side.
He departed on a season-long loan to CSKA Moscow at the start of the campaign having spent less than a full year at Goodison Park. His exploits didn’t win over the Toffees fans which is probably one of the reasons he’s decided not to return. He has scored 5 and assisted 3 for the Russian side in his 19 league appearances.
Quick and sharp on the ball, the Croatian international has been in good form for Moscow since making the loan switch and has become a rather important feature of the first-team. He was lucky enough to even face Real Madrid in the group stage of the Champions League this season – something he wouldn’t have achieve at Everton.
His style of play can be seen as overly aggressive at times but it does do the job for him. Quite direct in the way he likes to get the ball forward, his dribbling and short passing help him glide on the surface. He boasts an excellent finish inside the box and can play down the flanks or as a number ten down the middle.
His weaknesses were brought into the spotlight when he played in the Premier League though as he was constant getting caught out of position. He didn’t seem to have the strength or stamina to really make a name for himself in the English top-flight.
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With no apparent future to be seen at Everton, it is indeed a smart decision by the player to make his Russian loan move permanent. Everton made a mistake signing this Croatian in 2017 and will do well to offload him in the upcoming summer window.