Everton Opinion: Why Reece James would be a top fit for the Toffees?
According to a report from The Liverpool Echo, Everton are interested in Chelsea youngster Reece James.
Reece James, 19, is yet to make his first-team debut for Chelsea but is rated highly at Stamford Bridge and has impressed on loan at Wigan Athletic. He was named in the Championship Team of the Season and also won three awards at Wigan’s end of the season awards ceremony, including the Player of the Year award last month.
The teenager’s performances have also caught the attention of Manchester United, Brighton and Burnley, adds the report. But it’s Everton that should make a move for Reece James in a bid to strengthen their defence ahead of the 2019/20 campaign.
Everton had a difficult campaign even though they finished ninth in the table. The Toffees found goals hard to come by due to a lack of prolific forwards. At the other end of the pitch, they leaked goals consistently despite Kurt Zouma and Michael Keane forming a strong partnership at the back.
The Merseysiders have had their issues at right full-back as well, with both Seamus Coleman and Jonjoe Kenny failing to impress Marco Silva. Coleman regained his form at the business end of the season but Silva needs to bring an upgrade over the Irishman to at least match the brilliance of Lucas Digne on the other side of the defence.
As Everton are ready to offload Kenny in a massive summer overhaul, Silva would be wise to replace him with Reece James.
A right-back by trade, James operates with a lot of pace and intensity and possesses bundles of energy to run for the entire 90 minutes without getting tired. He is explosive and physical and at such a tender age has the awareness to snuff out danger before it grows.
The teenager loves to play at the front foot, which makes him such a reliable attacking outlet to have on the right. Blessed with a good technique, the England U20 international can make penetrative runs down the right flank. However, there are some question marks over his defensive capabilities as he can sometimes leave his teammates vulnerable at the back.
All in all, James could potentially have a similar impact to Digne at the Goodison Park, which would certainly make Silva’s blue army serious contenders for a top-six finish next season.
Verdict
Chelsea would certainly be reluctant to sell one of their brightest prospects to Everton following their two-window transfer ban, and with James’ contract not set to expire until the summer of 2022, the west London outfit hold all of the cards.
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Regardless of the fact, Everton should try their luck to sign him this summer.
