Everton should replace Cenk Tosun with Mbaye Diagne
According to an earlier report from Birmingham Mail, Wolverhampton Wanderers were linked with a move for Kasimpasa’s Senegalese international striker Mbaye Diagne in January. However, the Premier League new boys haven’t followed up their interest in the African.
Diagne,27, has been somewhat of a late bloomer at the highest level. He was signed by Juventus back in 2013 but had loan stints at clubs in France, Belgium, UAE and Hungary. He was transferred to Chinese Super League club Tianjin TEDA after a successful loan spell at Hungarian club Ujpest.
The Senegalese international tasted reasonable success in the Chinese Super League where he scored 16 goals from 44 league games before joining Turkish Super Lig club Kasimpasa in the second half of last season.
He has been a revelation since he made his move to Kasimpasa. Although Diagne was overlooked for Senegal’s 23-man World Cup squad, the 27-year-old has continued his merry way in club football. Diagne scored 12 goals in his debut season at Kasimpasa and his returns have multiplied manifold this term.
Diagne has racked up goals at an alarming rate this season, having scored 20 goals so far. He has averaged a whopping 3.9 shots, 2.8 successful aerial duels and 1.2 key passes per game in the Turkish top flight.
Standing at 6ft. 3 inches with a towering frame, Diagne’s primary attributes as a centre-forward are his strength, power and aerial ability. He is not the most technically sound striker in Europe but he makes up for it with his physicality and eye for goal.
The Senegalese ace excels with his hold-up play up front, using his strength to shield the ball from his defensive counterparts and bringing others into play. He is not particularly a great passer but he has the ability to link up well with his teammates, creating chances with subtle flick-ons and lay-offs.
To put things into perspective, Everton should take the initiative and take the first step towards landing the Senegalese beast in January. The Toffees have struggled for consistency this season despite landing a few big names in the summer and they should look to bolster their misfiring attack in the mid-season trading period.
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Marco Silva’s men succumbed to defeats to Spurs and Leicester City in recent weeks and they need a prolific centre-forward to get things back on track. Cenk Tosun’s failure to deliver the goods has forced Silva to use Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin up front. Both of them have shown plenty of promise but neither of them is capable of racking up about 20 goals in a season.
Diagne has all the makings of developing into the prolific Premier League striker and Everton should not hesitate to take that calculated risk of investing in the in-form goal machine as he would provide them with the much-needed momentum in the second half of the season.
