Everton target Kalidou Koulibaly betters John Stones in six key areas

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Everton have been linked with Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly.

According to the latest reports by Gianluca Di Marzio, Everton have offered £34 million for Napoli’s centre-back Kalidou Koulibaly while Chelsea also remain keen on the player.

The Toffees are in real need of bolstering their defensive ranks this summer, as last season it was often their back-line which let them down by conceding 55 league goals over the course of the campaign.

Despite their struggles, centre-back John Stones is still widely regarded as one of the best young defenders on the continent and he is being linked with a £50 million move to Manchester City (ESPN).

Surely Everton will find it practically impossible to find a better defender than the young England international even if money is no longer a big issue, especially considering how much City clearly rate him.

Well, the club’s latest target Koulibaly may not be the most renowned defender in the world being only a six-capped Senegal international at 25, yet last season had a simply outstanding campaign.

As shown by the table above, the towering centre-back bettered Stones in as many as six key defensive areas.

Koulibaly averaged more tackles, effective clearances, interceptions, aerial duels won, key passes and even accurate passes per Serie A encounter as Napoli challenged for the Champions League spots.

The French-born player was one of the top defenders in Italy last term, and Everton would be buying not only an ideal Stones replacement but arguably a better player now should they get him.

The Merseyside club have the financial clout under the ownership of Farhad Moshiri to really make a difference this coming season, and the addition of Koulibaly would be a very big statement indeed.