Jonjoe Kenny has had an impressive start to life in Germany at Schalke and manager David Wagner heaps praise on the Everton man.
Kenny, who struggled for game time in England under Everton manager Marco Silva, has been hugely impressive for Schalke since joining them on loan this summer. The youngster has played every minute so far in the German top-flight and opened his account with a brilliant strike against Hertha Berlin just before the international break.
Speaking about the decision to bring him in on loan, Wagner explained that he had followed Kenny’s career since he played for England’s youth teams as well as when he faced Huddersfield Town for Everton.
He said: “I had a good picture of Jonjoe and, after I joined Schalke, we all together agreed that we had to sign a right-back.
“As soon as I found that we were not able to afford someone to buy because of our financial restrictions, Jonjoe was one of the first names I put on the table when I discussed with our board. Luckily, they agreed to try to sign him and luckily he decided to join our football club.”
Kenny’s future at Everton is certainly unclear with Seamus Coleman clearly the first choice. Summer signing Djibril Sidibe will also play a part in making life difficult for the 22-year-old once he comes back but Wagner is certainly a fan as he claimed that Kenny was one of his best signings from the summer window.
“I can tell you what, he is already close to becoming a fan favourite here in our stadium. He has done an amazing job so far and scored a wonderful goal against Berlin. He is, for sure, one of the best signings which we have made this summer.”
With a lot of the season still to be played, Kenny has the time to prove to everyone at Everton that he is capable of playing at the top level. However, with Wagner’s admiration for him, the Toffees’ loss could well prove to be Schalke’s gain at the end of his loan spell.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
