Marko Arnautovic has handed in a transfer request at Stoke and West Ham are keen, but should Everton consider him instead of Swansea’s Gylfi Sigurdsson?
After rejecting a bid from Leicester City, the BBC reports Swansea City have now slapped a £50m price-tag on Everton target Gylfi Sigurdsson, with the midfielder’s valuation seeming to be increasing by the day.
Having just received an initial £75m from Manchester United for the sale of Romelu Lukaku (BBC) and backed by the finances of billionaire co-owner Farhad Moshiri, the Toffees are hardly struggling for cash, but at the same time will not want to be lured into overpaying for targets.
Swansea City’s Gylfi Sigurdsson
That is why the Merseyside outfit should perhaps consider a move for an alternative attacking midfielder that they targeted last summer, especially in light of recent developments.
The Liverpool Echo reported of the club’s interest in Stoke City’s Marko Arnautovic in 2016 before the Austrian signed a new contract, while the player himself was later quoted by the same newspaper, saying: “Ronald Koeman tried to persuade me to move to Everton.”
Well according to the Telegraph, after Stoke rejected a £15m bid for Arnautovic from West Ham United, the 28-year-old has now handed in a transfer request at the bet365 Stadium and could be allowed to leave for around £20m.
That would represent a significantly lower outlay than the one quoted for Sigurdsson, with the Austria international having the ability to operate on either flank in a three-man attack just as his Icelandic rival does for the Swans.
Also, over the past two seasons the two players’ records are not as starkly different as some may think. In that time Sigurdsson – who is five months younger – scored 20 goals and provided 15 assists in 74 Premier League games. Arnautovic scored 17 times and provided 11 assists in 66 matches.
With Europa League football on offer, Everton would surely be able to convince the Potteries star to come to Goodison Park rather than the London Stadium if they match the Hammers’ offer, so perhaps Koeman should revisit his targets from 12 months ago?
Stoke City’s Marko Arnautovic in action with West Ham United’s Jose Fonte
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