Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton appeared to be on the verge of bringing Lille’s Ligue 1 star Gabriel Magalhaes to the Premier League very recently.
Gabriel Magalhaes has cast further doubt on a move to Everton with the £30 million Lille defender admitting to Foot Sur 07 that he plans to join a club who can fight for titles at the very top of the game.
Now, the Toffees might have one of the most successful and high-profile coaches in world football patrolling the Goodison Park touchline these days but Carlo Ancelotti has a huge task on his hands if he wants to bring the glory days back to the blue half of Merseyside.
Everton have not sampled the sweet taste of silverware since 1995. And though majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri has deeper pockets than most, the North West giants are a million miles away from challenging Manchester City and bitter rivals Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table.
Maybe that is why Gabriel appears to be wavering on a move which, just a month ago, felt like only a matter of time.
“If possible, (my next move) would be to go to a club that is fighting for titles, with the certainty of progressing and who can give me the support to integrate into the team,” he says.
The Independent reported in late March that Gabriel had undergone a medical with The Toffees as he closed in on a move to Goodison Park. But the trail has gone cold of late with the Brazilian powerhouse now seemingly on his way to join Napoli, the club who sacked Ancelotti in the autumn.
According to TMW, the Partenopei have now agreed personal terms with Gabriel. And while the 2019/20 campaign has been one to forget for Napoli, the prospect of trophies, and regular Champions League football, feels far more likely in Southern Italy than it does in Northern England.
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