Everton using the chance to offload speedster for £22.5m would be a win-win for all parties

Everton Opinion: The Toffees cashing in on Ademola Lookman makes perfect sense for all parties involved

According to BBC, Everton are closing in on the sale of England U-21 winger Ademola Lookman to RB Leipzig, with the report claiming that the German Bundesliga outfit has agreed a fee of £22.5 million for the 21-year-old. 

This is not the first time, though, that Lookman has been linked with a permanent move to RB Leipzig. The Bundesliga side had been ready to pay well in excess of £20 million for the 21-year-old last summer but Everton pulled the plug on the deal as the Toffees didn’t want to move him on at that time. (h/t BBC)

Leipzig’s interest in Lookman stems from the Englishman’s brief loan spell at the Red Bull Arena back in the second half of the 2017-18 campaign, where he impressed one and all with 5 goals and 3 assists in just 11 Bundesliga outings.

Although Leipzig had been unsuccessful in their efforts to turn his loan deal into a permanent move last summer, it looks as if they are finally going to get their hands on the coveted attacker.

Ralph Hasenhuttl, who is currently in charge of Southampton, was the man responsible for bringing Lookman on loan in Germany.

The winger’s dazzling displays convinced the Austrian of his obvious talent and vast potential and he even wanted to sign the 21-year-old at Southampton earlier this summer, having failed in his pursuit of a permanent deal for the England U-21 international at Leipzig last summer. (h/t The Independent)

Lookman, who rose to prominence with Charlton Athletic in the Championship before completing an £11 million move to Everton back in January 2017, has struggled for regular minutes over the course of his stay at Goodison Park due to stiff competition for places.

The 21-year-old has made only 48 appearances for the Toffees in all competitions till date, with a large fraction of those coming as cameos off the bench. 

In all probability, Everton had decided against selling Lookman last summer due to the arrival of Marco Silva as the new manager. That, however, hardly worked any wonders for the youngster, as Lookman was sparingly used by Silva in the Premier League over the course of this past season. 

The 21-year-old started only thrice in the league and made a further 18 substitute appearances, registering a couple of assists in the process. Lookman found himself behind the likes of Theo Walcott, Richarlison and Bernard in the pecking order last season and cut a frustrated figure on the bench more often than not. 

It is a no-brainer that a player of his quality deserves to play a lot more than he has done at Goodison Park in recent times.

And given that he doesn’t feature in the manager’s plans as a regular starter, things are unlikely to take a dramatic turnaround for him next term, meaning that a move elsewhere should be in the best interests of all parties involved. 

Lookman is still very much in the developmental stage of his career and lack of regular minutes at Everton is only going to stall his progress.

We all know that youngsters are enthusiastic to be in the thick of things week in week out and that apparently is not going to be possible for Lookman at Goodison Park.

The 21-year-old showcased during his loan spell at RB Leipzig that he is more than capable of making a big impact when backed by the manager with regular starts in the first team.\

After all, the Bundesliga is at par with the Premier League both in terms of quality and competition and Lookman certainly deserves a lot of credit for his performances in the German top-flight. 

Looking at things from Everton’s perspective, the Toffees do not have any reason to rue the potential departure of Lookman, simply because the youngster has cut a rather forlorn figure on the sidelines over the past couple of years.

In fact, they should be happy that they are being able to offload him for such a hefty fee, which they can possibly reinvest to improve other areas of their squad. 

Everton are in desperate need of a new centre-forward to spearhead the attack next season, whilst a permanent deal for Chelsea loanee Kurt Zouma is yet to be finalised. Hence, the Toffees could use the funds raised from Lookman’s sale to sort out some major issues ahead of the upcoming campaign. 

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All in all, Lookman’s sale to RB Leipzig should benefit both the club as well as the player and the Toffees should complete a deal at the earliest.