Why Everton Should Drop Their Interest In Baba Rahman
Ronald Koeman has done a decent job with the squad at his disposal at the Goodison Park last season. They have qualified for the Europa League competitio. They might lose their goal scoring machine Romelu Lukaku this summer and they are looking to add some quality players to their squad, not only to replace the Belgian but also to strengthen the squad.
But one strange link that refuses to die is of Chelsea starlet, Baba Rahman’s. The 22-year old played 15 games for Chelsea under Jose Mourinho and was sent out on loan to Schalke last season. He got 13 Bundesliga appearances to his name but was not able to impress enough to book a permanent place in the squad for next season.
However, he has been a long-term target for Everton and with Antonio Conte not interested in keeping him, it was reported that they were close to opening a negotiation for the player. However, the versatile defender was hit with a knee injury while on duty with his national team and this seems to have reduced Everton’s interest in the player.
The report suggests that Rahman will now only be fit by the start of the next season, which might see him miss the pre-season and Everton could drop their interest in the 22-year old.
Capable of playing in an attacking role, Rahman is a defensive minded full-back who loves to put in crunching tackles and recover the ball quickly. He is quick, strong and never allows a man to beat him in one on one situations easily, and is a player who can shore up most defences in England.
At 22, he will only get better and Everton could have given him the right exposure but he is not what the Toffees need at the moment. Leighton Baines has been decent in that position all season and though Koeman does not have a stellar backup in the squad, Rahman was not the right man to solve that problem.
Koeman sets up his side in a compact manner and the Chelsea man can add solidity to his backline but the manager needs his wide men to add width to his attack on the counter and Rahman will be a liability in such situations. He is an excellent dribbler with decent pace. But bombing forward to put in pinpoint crosses is not his game and Koeman cannot spend on a player who does not fit in his system, especially when they have to challenge in the Europa League.
The injury is an extra motivation to get out of the deal Everton have made the right decision by opting out of the deal to sign Baba Rahman.