Chelsea outcast Michy Batshuayi is reportedly open to joining Everton as Frank Lampard continues to find solutions to strengthen his attack this summer.
According to talkSPORT, Frank Lampard’s hopes of bolstering his frontline in the summer transfer window have been boosted, with Chelsea misfit Michy Batshuayi open to departing from Stamford Bridge to join Everton in search of regular first-team football.
The 28-year-old forward has entered the final year of his contract with Chelsea and is ready to exit from Stamford Bridge for good, having spent the majority of his Chelsea career out on loan. Batshuayi joined the Blues in 2016 from Marseille but has failed to establish himself as a first-team regular, making just five Premier League starts in six years.
While the Belgian international has largely been a forgotten man for the west London club, he has shown to be a capable striker through his various loan spells, especially at Borussia Dortmund, Crystal Palace and Besiktas. Batshuayi has also proven to be a prolific operator on the international stage for the Belgian national side, scoring 25 goals in just 45 caps thus far.
Despite being assigned a squad number for the upcoming season, Batshuayi is not expected to be part of Thomas Tuchel’s plans going forward, as the Chelsea manager already has a plethora of excellent attackers at his disposal, including new signing Raheem Sterling. So, Chelsea are actively looking to offload the 28-year-old if they can find a suitable suitor amid interest from Everton.
Batshuayi, for his part, is open to a transfer to Everton, who are in the market for additional attacking firepower. The Belgian forward is not the only Chelsea player Frank Lampard is interested in bringing to Goodison Park this summer, with Billy Gilmour, Conor Gallagher, Armando Broja, and Ross Barkley also on his wishlist.
After losing last season’s top scorer, Richarlison, to Tottenham Hotspur in a £60 million deal, Everton have brought in Dwight McNeil as their only attacking addition thus far in the summer. The former Burnley man, though, is hardly productive, having failed to score in the Premier League last term. Everton thus desperately require another source of goals besides Dominic Calvert-Lewin to offset Richarlison’s attacking output from the last term.
To that end, Batshuayi could be a good fit and is likely to be available for cheap this summer after being deemed surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge. The Chelsea misfit’s time at Besiktas showed he still has an eye for goal, as he registered figures of 14 goals and five assists from 33 Super Lig appearances.
Salomon Rondon has never been particularly convincing since arriving at Goodison Park, and his record is shoddy at best. Batshuayi would be a significant upgrade over the Venezuelan striker, and he could also add a new dimension to the Everton attack with his quickness, dribbling ability, and potency to score goals when in full swing.
Now that the Toffees have the green light from the player’s side, it will be interesting to see whether they will step up their pursuit of the 28-year-old Chelsea misfit. Everton remain in talks with the Blues over a summer move, and a deal could be on the cards.
