Can Everton take advantage of Barcelona’s Jean Michel Seri error?

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Nice midfielder Jean Michel Seri looked all set for La Liga and Barcelona, but the Premier League beckons now with Everton in the race.

It is fair to say Jean Michel Seri was not too happy when his transfer from Nice to Barcelona fell through in the summer.

“My dream to go to Barca has been broken, and that — for me — is terrible,” the Ivory Coast midfielder, who looked set for a £35 million move to the Camp Nou, told El Mundo Deportivo in August.

“After the [Champions League playoff against Napoli] I met with Barcelona’s directors for more than an hour and they didn’t tell me anything about not going through with signing me. I went home really happy; then the next day I read the news. I was stunned.

“I went to the Nice offices to see the board and find out what happened. I exploded! The walls shook.”

With Barcelona nine points clear at the top of La Liga and the title seemingly wrapped up already, it does not look as if Ernesto Valverde’s side have been too badly affected by their failure to conclude a deal for arguably Ligue 1’s best midfielder from 2016/17.

But Barca are about more than black and white scorelines, however, and Valverde’s relentless win machine has still come under considerable criticism in some quarters for failing to control the midfield in a way befitting of the club’s Cryffian principles.

Seri, a magnificent passer who none other than legendary playmaker Xavi stated had ‘Barca DNA’, looked like the kind of player who could bring death-by-possession back to Catalonia.

But six months after Barcelona’s deal fell apart, Sky Sports state that Seri could move, instead, to Merseyside. It is understood that Everton, who have been tracking the 26-year-old for some time, are one of a number of Premier League teams interested.

Sam Allardyce’s side are not short of midfielders of course, but Seri is a truly elite talent who would walk into the starting XI.

But can they take advantage of Barcelona’s failure to sign a player who, in the eyes of the legendary Xavi, could fill his void in the centre of the Camp Nou midfield?