Tosin Adarabioyo could have been an established Premier League player at Everton – but he’s stuck in Manchester City’s reserves instead.
Tosin Adarabioyo has only really got himself to blame as he continues to wait for his first Premier League appearance under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
The 20-year-old centre-back has featured just twice since the Catalan coach took over from Manuel Pellegrini in the summer of 2016 – his only outing in 2017/18 so far coming during the EFL Cup clash with Wolves last month.
And despite City switching to a three-man defensive line, not to mention the ongoing injury problems suffered by Vincent Kompany, there still does not appear to be any room in the Premier League leaders’ first-team squad for the talented academy graduate Adarabioyo.
It’s tempting to wonder, then, whether the England youth international would have already established himself as a top flight player had he swapped Manchester for Merseyside in the summer.
Missed opportunity
The Telegraph reported in the summer that Everton were interested in signing Adarabioyo on a free contract with his deal at City set to expire – only for the centre-back to ink a new long-term deal at the Etihad worth £25,000 a week.
And with Everton’s defensive problems showing no signs of coming to an end, it appears that Adarabioyo may have missed out on an opportunity to stake his claim for a starting berth in the Premier League.
Ramiro Funes Mori has missed the entire season through injury, Michael Keane is yet to justify his £25 million price tag while Ashley Williams and Phil Jagielka are well past their best. There might have been a role in the Premier League’s second worst defence, then, for the promising Adarabioyo.
Instead, he will have to be content with academy football for the time being.
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