Everton have become the latest club to express interest in Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Harry Winks in January.
According to an exclusive report from Caught Offside, Everton have joined the race to sign Harry Winks. The Tottenham Hotspur star has been identified as a potential target for Rafa Benitez, in his bid to further strengthen the midfield unit in the upcoming January transfer window.
Earlier reports this month did indicate that Winks was keen on securing a January exit from Tottenham. The midfielder was interestingly courted by AS Roma, managed by former head coach Jose Mourinho. But the Portuguese tactician could now face stiff competition from Everton in the pursuit of the Winks, with Inter Milan also in contention.
Part of the Tottenham academy since 2002, Winks has fallen out of favour a bit in recent years, especially after the exit of Mauricio Pochettino. The Englishman has never really managed to establish himself as a first-team regular, notably falling behind Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and even Oliver Skipp in the pecking order.
Under Nuno Espirito Santo, the 25-year-old has featured in the Premier League only twice, in the new season. As a result, the player is keen on moving on and that is where Everton comes into the fray.
The Toffees have enjoyed an excellent early-season success under new coach Rafa Benitez. But they are a little short stacked in midfield, with Fabian Delph, Jean-Philippe Gbamin and Andre Gomes struggling with injuries. It leaves Abdoulaye Doucoure and Allan as the only two viable options in the middle of the park.
In order to address the issue, the Merseyside giants have been linked with a January swoop for Donny van de Beek. But recent reports suggest that coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is once again being reluctant in offloading the Dutch outcast despite all his struggles regarding lack of game-time at Old Trafford.
As such, Everton have now identified Winks as an ideal alternative. The Englishman might be a completely different player when compared to van de Beek with a much lower ceiling, but he can certainly offer some excellent back-up for Allan or even Doucoure in the central midfield slots.
For Tottenham’s part, they wouldn’t mind offloading Winks either, knowing his sale would give the opportunity to bring in someone new. They are one of the clubs, along with Leeds United, that are in contention to sign Nahitan Nandez in January so it will be interesting to see how this transfer saga takes shape within the coming months.
