Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton reportedly want to sign Nathan Ake from Premier League rivals Bournemouth.
Nathan Ake could be about to join Virgil van Dijk on Merseyside next season with one Dutchman describing his Everton-linked compatriot as a ‘fantastic player’, in quotes reported by the Daily Echo.
With a 4-0 trouncing at the hands of Chelsea very much fresh in the minds, The Toffees have received a rather brutal reminder of the need for a new centre-half at Goodison Park.
And while Bournemouth talisman Ake won’t come cheap, with The Sun floating a £40 million transfer fee last summer, a player with his vast potential could solve Everton’s defensive woes for years to come.
On current form, the one-time Stamford Bridge youngster would stroll into Carlo Ancelotti’s starting XI.
Though Ake is unlikely to replace Van Dijk as Merseyside’s most impressive Dutchman, even if the Liverpool enforcer does rate his countryman very highly indeed.
“First of all, he’s a fantastic guy,” the Champions League winner has admitted. “I speak with him quite a bit at the national team and I think he’s a fantastic player as well.
“On Saturday he showed with clearances and I think he stepped up when he had the armband as well. It’s just good to see that he’s improving.
“He has the quality but he has to have more than just the quality these days. But he’s still young, he’s improving and you never know what decision might happen.”
Sky Sports reported recently that Ake is a long-running target for Liverpool’s Merseyside rivals and Bournemouth’s chances of hanging onto the highly-rated stopper surely rest entirely on whether they are a Premier League team next season.
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