Steve McManaman feels that Jean Clair Todibo may be too confident for his own good, after watching the £17 million Everton target suffer a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, while speaking to BT Sport (16 May, 3pm).
The 20-year-old centre-back has been a revelation since joining Schalke on loan from Barcelona during the January transfer window. But he was always likely to endure a difficult afternoon it as David Wagner’s side made the short trip to Ruhr neighbours Dortmund to commemorate the Bundesliga’s long-awaited resumption.
And it is fair to say Todibo did not exactly enjoy a game to remember as the world’s eyes turned in unison to the Signal Iduna Park.
The fresh-faced Frenchman was given the runaround by Julian Brandt, Erling Haaland and co before being subbed off at the break with Schalke well on their way to an embarrassing derby defeat.
McManaman certainly believes that a defender who has reportedly held talks over a move to Everton (The Mail) certainly has a lot to learn.
“He likes to take chances. He’s not a big, physically imposing central defender – he’s almost alike a midfielder. He likes to play on the ball, and he takes too many chances as far as I’m concerned, especially in games like this,” Liverpool legend McManaman claimed.
“Its alright if you’re dominating possession and you can step forward (out of defence). But things like turning out and getting closed down…he has to be very, very careful.
“You can see he’s a confident boy.”
It is this supreme self-confidence and willingness to carry the ball out from the back that caught the eye of La Liga champions Barcelona in January 2019, after Todibo had shot to fame with Ligue 1 outfit Toulouse.
But, with Barca keen to sell a number of squad players to raise funds for Inter Milan forward Lautaro Martinez, the smart money may be on Todibo joining Lucas Digne, Andre Gomes and Yerry Mina at Everton.
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