Everton want to sign ‘fearless’ player who made history on his first senior start

Everton have enquired about signing Juventus’ Koni De Winter.

The Toffees are among a number of clubs targeting the defender this summer, according to TuttoJuve.

De Winter joined Juventus’ academy in 2018 and was a regular for their U23 side before making his official debut in their 4-0 defeat to Chelsea in 2021.

The then-teenager was handed his first start for the senior side two weeks later, when he became the youngest starter for Juventus in Champions League history – while also keeping a clean sheet in a 1-0 win over Malmo.

Veteran defender Leonardo Bonucci was quick to praise the youngster’s performance, saying: “Koni had a good game, he played with personality; we had already seen him in London against Chelsea. He has no fear and this will be an advantage for his career.”

De Winter went onto join Empoli on loan where he picked up five clean sheets in 14 matches.

The centre-back has since attracted interest from across Europe, with journalist Mirko Di Natale previously claiming that West Ham were eager to bring him to the Premier League.

The 21-year-old was reportedly available for as little as £13 million in April, though the increasing interest in his signature could knock his price up.

Koni De Winter is the versatile defender that could be very useful to Everton

The Belgian can play at centre-back, full-back or central midfield and could become a huge asset for Sean Dyche if the Toffees struggle to splash the cash all over the pitch.

With interest from the likes of West Ham, Lille and Bayer Leverkusen, Everton would do very well to snap him up for £13 million. However, they may be at a disadvantage given that they are the only team of the three mentioned that couldn’t guarantee De Winter with European football next season.

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Everton have already made their first bid worth £25million for Almeria striker El Bilal Toure but it’s short of the asking rate, per the Mirror.

According to the Liverpool Echo [14 July], he’s got a release clause of £34.2million at the La Liga outfit this summer.

However, as the summer progresses, that valuation is likelier to drop which means the Toffees can sign him at a discounted fee.

Everton could wait and see if other clubs do show an immediate interest in him or if the path for them is clear.

 

Atalanta are the other club keen on signing him and it remains to be seen if they can afford what the Spanish club are looking for in order to part ways with the Mali international.

It seems like Toure wants to leave and if Almeria do not see any offers arriving at the table, they could part ways with him for a discounted fee.

Everton do not have the resources to get into a bidding war with anyone so they’re going to wait this one out to see how things transpire in the coming weeks.

Sean Dyche must also line up backup options as it’s important not to put all eggs in one basket, especially for the position they need to strengthen the most.

On paper, this seems like a signing that makes a lot of sense, but right now, he’s just not affordable for the Toffees.