Santos winger Yeferson Soteldo has admitted he dreams of playing in the Premier League after being linked with a £32 million move to Everton, speaking to FIFA’s official website.
What the Venezeula international lacks in stature, he more than makes up for in skill.
At 5ft 2in, Soteldo would be the shortest player in Premier League history – a man who would make Aaron Lennon, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Ryan Fraser look like Peter Crouch.
But, in an era dominated by pocket-rocket superstars such as Lionel Messi, Xavi, Luka Modric and Andres Iniesta, you’d be a fool to write off the Santos talisman – even if there would be understandable concerns about whether he could adapt to the physicality of the English game.
Speaking to Calciomercato last year, the president of Santos admitted Everton and Inter Milan had asked him about the availability of Soteldo, the club’s £32 million-rated creative lynchpin.
And if the Toffees come calling again after this summer’s Copa America, the 23-year-old would find it hard to say no.
“Today, I can say I’m ready to go to the next level, although I feel good here at Santos. We’ll see after the Copa America (which ends in July). I’ve always liked the English league,” Soteldo says, before opening up on his admiration for the similarly short Leo Messi.
“I looked at him as another small guy and thought: ‘If he can become one of the best in the world, what’s to stop me making it?’
“Besides, we had similar styles. I felt that, while maybe I wasn’t going to be the best, at least I could excel like him.”
A big-money move to Goodison Park would likely see Soteldo replace another diminutive South American – the exit-linked Bernard – on the left of Carlo Ancelotti’s attack.
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