It’s taken a while for Rafa Benitez to put his money where his mouth is but it looks as though Everton are moving closer to their first signing under the Spaniard.
The Toffees haven’t moved quickly in the transfer market but pending the Spaniard’s approval, addition number one is on the way.
What’s the word?
Everton have been linked with a number of faces in the window with an emphasis put on the defensive line.
Ben White, Denzel Dumfries and Max Aarons to name a few have been on their radar but their first acquisition of the summer looks set to be a midfielder.
That’s according to Correio da Manhã (via Sport Witness) who suggest that Matheus Nunes is on the verge of arriving on Merseyside from Sporting Lisbon.
How many signings do Everton need?
Terms look as though they’ve been agreed and now the move just depends on one thing; the approval of their new manager; Benitez.
Is he a good signing?
If Everton secure this transfer and get it over the line, supporters will have every right to be pleased.
It’s always nice to secure your first signing of the summer and when it’s for a player like Nunes, there should be particular excitement.
The 22-year-old isn’t exactly a household name to Premier League audiences but he was a solid and reliable performer in the middle of the park for a team who won the Portuguese top-flight last term.
Nunes proved to be a dynamic performer, starting on 12 occasions and impressing in small glimpses.
He was involved in five goals while his ability to carry the ball from deep undoubtedly stood out, completing 1.2 dribbles per game.
For context, only Allan in the Everton midfield last term recorded more than that. Per Stats Bomb and FB Ref, his shots per goal ranked him as the fifth-best in that department throughout Liga NOS.
With that in mind, by handing regular game time and starts to Nunes, perhaps he could start to find the net with more regularity.
Throw in his ball carrying and this looks like a mightily attractive signing.
Supporters should be enthralled that Everton are finally on the verge of concluding their first transfer of the summer.
AND in other news, Everton may repeat their Walcott howler by signing £30m gem who Rafa compared to Messi…