When Gylfi Sigurdsson arrived in a club-record deal worth £45m in the summer of 2017, then Everton manager Ronald Koeman proudly remarked that they had signed “one of the best in the Premier League” in his position.
Instead, the 30-year-old has proven to be anything but in his time at Goodison Park.
Despite playing 26 games this season, Sigurdsson has managed a measly two goals and two assists across all competitions – he hasn’t scored in the Premier League since he did so against West Ham way back in mid-October.
This campaign has been a real struggle for the Iceland international, and there is no question that he hasn’t delivered on the enormous price tag that accompanied him to Goodison Park. In his 100 total Everton appearances, the former Swansea man has just 22 goals and 14 assists to his name – nowhere near enough for someone occupying that all-important number ten role.
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And that is exactly why the Merseyside outfit’s interest in Gent starlet Jonathan David could be the final nail in the coffin for Sigurdsson.
The Sun claimed back in January that Carlo Ancelotti was ready to dump the Everton midfielder “as soon as he can”, and if the Toffees can pull off a swoop for David, then it’s difficult to see how Sigurdsson can remain at Goodison Park in the long-term.
In 35 games this season, David has scored 21 goals and provided a further ten assists, and whilst he has proven his versatility by playing in four different positions, the 5 foot 10 prospect is predominantly an attacking midfielder.
As per Transfermarkt, in the 24 matches he has played in that role, he has netted 11 times and set up eight goals for his teammates. It’s that kind of consistent end product that Everton thought they may be getting with Sigurdsson.
Whilst David may be performing in the Belgian First Division, and as such, it is difficult to truly gauge whether he would be able to make a successful transition into English football, the similarity of his position and goal-scoring threat would surely leave Sigurdsson marginalised.
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When you’ve got the likes of Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison in your team, you need attacking midfielders who can provide them with good service, and also chip in with goals too. The Toffees can’t always rely upon their current duo to fire the team to glory, and having someone else in the line-up who can be relied upon as both a goal-scorer and assist-maker would make Ancelotti’s side far more dangerous.
Sigurdsson has proven in his time on Merseyside that he is simply not that man. At 20, David is considerably younger, and could quite feasibly play for a number of years for Everton in that number ten role. And that really should be the nail in the coffin for the man signed by Koeman.
Meanwhile, Everton must end their interest in this former Premier League ace.