Merseyside duo Everton and Liverpool are reportedly keen on Lille winger Nicolas Pepe this summer.
The ambitions for Everton next season would be to join the likes of Liverpool in Europe, but in order to try and take that difficult step then they have to sign players of high quality.
The Telegraph have claimed that Everton are keen on making a swoop for Lille forward Nicolas Pepe, who is valued at £59 million and is also a target for Liverpool.
Versatile attacker Pepe is one of the brightest talents in Europe as he will be keen to showcase his talents on the big Premier League stage, if he gets a chance to make a move.
If Everton can secure his services, considering some of the clubs that are keen to add him to their ranks, then it’ll show Marco Silva’s sides intent ahead of the new campaign.
The Toffees aren’t in Europe, so they are already on the back foot in terms of trying to persuade him to join them over other interested parties who are in Europe.
But in some cases, money, and perhaps more regular game time and an ambition plan, can persuade a player to make such a move in such circumstances.
During his time for Lille, Pepe has played 79 matches in all competitions for the club, both out wide and on the flanks, scoring 37 goals and supplying his teammates with 17 assists [transfermarkt].
Both Everton and Liverpool would need a player like Pepe for their own different reasons. The Toffees need to add more quality to their starting XI, as they aim to finish in a European place next season.
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp has a pretty strong starting XI, as he will want attack-minded players making serious challenges for a starting birth by producing performances when given a chance, and Pepe has the capabilities of doing just that.
His skills lie in his dribbling ability, being direct and using his pace – qualities which would be very useful to most Premier League clubs, especially those on Merseyside.
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