Everton opinion: Should the Toffees make a move for Boubakary Soumare?

French news outlet LeEquipe has reported that Everton and Manchester City are in the race for Ligue 1 starlet Boubakary Soumare. The young midfielder is contracted to LOSC Lille and has done well for the club, despite featuring sparingly this season.

Easily amongst their most promising prospects, the former PSG youth star is a central midfielder by trade. However, he’s often been used as a defensive midfielder in the little minutes that he has played this season.

Soumare arrived at Lille in the summer of 2017 as a free transfer, finishing last season on a high with 17 appearances to his name.

This season, he’s on par to beat that record and his stature as a player has grown with time. Dubbed the new Paul Pogba by many, the 20-year-old has a long long way to go before he replicates the World Cup winner’s exploits.

However, that being said, under the right manager Boubakary Soumare has the chance to come as close as he can to Pogba. A box-to-box midfielder by trade, the 20-year-old is a reliable link between attack and defence as he’s proved so far.

Moreover, with a 6ft 2in frame at his disposal, the Frenchman is great at holding off defenders, using his strength and long-limbs well. Furthermore, despite being very tall, Soumare is very agile with or without the ball, getting off the mark very quickly.

That will prove to make a big difference for Everton, as without Tom Davies, they have few players of that profile. Andre Gomes is on loan from Barcelona, Idrissa Gueye has been linked with a move away and James McCarthy has had far too many injury issues over the years.

That has left them without a box-to-box midfielder. The Toffees have a few reinforcements that they need next summer and Boubakary Soumare should be among the many at the top of their list.

His age shouldn’t prove to be a problem, especially if the Frenchman keeps performing like the way he has been. He has the potential to become amongst Everton’s best players and the Premier League should be no trouble for him.

Both Boubakary Soumare’s mentality and physicality will help him with the transition but with Manchester City also in the race, it does complicate things.

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Conclusion

For Everton, adding someone like Boubakary Soumare will allow them to splurge elsewhere, knowing that they’ve added a future star. The 20-year-old, with proper game-time, has the potential to become a very promising midfielder.