Everton and West Ham United are reportedly battling over Adama Soumaoro.
Lille defender Adama Soumaoro (L) vies with Olympique de Marseille’s Remy Cabella
According to the Daily Mail, Everton and West Ham United are both interested in landing Lille defender Adama Soumaoro in January.
The Toffees have been rejuvenated under new boss Sam Allardyce, conceding just one goal since he took over as manager, having been weak defensively under predecessor Ronald Koeman.
Meanwhile, West Ham are starting to tighten up under David Moyes, having kept clean sheets against Chelsea and Arsenal in their last two Premier League games.
Despite the defensive upturn for both clubs, it seems that a battle is on the cards, as the Daily Mail report that both teams want to sign Lille defender Adama Soumaoro in January.
Soumaoro, 25, has come up through the ranks with Lille, and has made four appearances for the Ligue 1 side this season, in what has been a dismal campaign amid the chaos surrounding Marcelo Bielsa.
Lille are now in financial disarray and need to sell, with Soumaoro allegedly valued at £20million ahead of the January transfer window, with Everton and West Ham among the interested clubs.
Nantes forward Emiliano Sala (L) challenges Lille’s Adama Soumaoro
Soumaoro is a strong and uncompromising, but whether the two Premier League sides are willing to splash such a huge fee on him – after limited success with Lille – remains to be seen.
Intriguingly, it’s noted that Sunderland had registered an interest in signing Soumaoro in 2016, when they were managed by both Allardyce and then Moyes, with the two managers now potentially going head to head for his signature.
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