Marco Silva backed Everton target Abdoulaye Doucoure to reach ‘next level’

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Everton are reportedly keen on landing Watford’s Abdoulaye Doucoure.

According the Mirror, Everton are interested in bringing Watford’s Abdoulaye Doucoure to Goodison Park as boss Marco Silva targets a reunion with the Frenchman.

Silva managed to lure Richarlison from his former club over the summer, despite frayed relations between the two clubs over Silva’s move to Merseyside.

Watford are still unlikely to want a deal with Everton, even after sanctioning Richarlison’s move to Goodison Park, but Silva looks set to try again with Doucoure.

Last year, Silva told the Watford Observer that he felt Doucoure has ‘fantastic skils’, and believed that Doucoure could ‘play at the next level’, having been impressed with him at Watford.

“I see in him fantastic skills. Of course everything is new to him; how we try to play in some moments. Firstly, he’s a worker, after he is a player with very good skills,” said Silva. “Until now he is progressing really, really well. He’s one player I believe he can improve his football and play at the next level,” he added.

Those comments now appear interesting, as Silva must now present Everton as ‘the next level’ to Doucoure, rather than other linked Premier League clubs such as Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.

It’s hard to break into the Premier League’s top six, but Everton seem to have the best shot at it, especially with Manchester United struggling this season, and Silva could use that to land the Watford ace.

Yet, with Watford thriving this season too – they sit just two points behind Everton – many will feel that Everton aren’t in fact a ‘next level’ up from the Hornets, and are still in that ‘best of the rest’ region outside of the Premier League’s elite.

Watford fans would certainly argue that, and whilst the move has paid dividends for Richarlison, Silva’s comments from 2017 now look fascinating as he potentially prepares to try and convince Doucoure that Everton are the right step for Doucoure’s career.