Why Everton should go all out to land Gelson Martins in January

Back in June 2018, the Telegraph had claimed that Everton were interested in signing Gelson Martins, who was then plying his trade for Sporting Lisbon.

The Portuguese winger, 24, had requested that his contract with Sporting be terminated following an incident where a group of around 50 supporters invaded the club’s training centre and assaulted several players and staff members.

In July 2018, he accepted an offer to join Atletico Madrid and a week later the Spanish club announced his signing on a free transfer.

However, Gelson Martins failed to establish himself under Diego Simeone at Atletico Madrid and was subsequently joined Ligue 1 outfit AS Monaco on loan in January 2019, scoring four goals in 16 appearances.

He played a crucial role in helping Monaco avoid relegation from that saw the Ligue 1 club sign on a permanent basis in July.

Gelson got his first goal of the season in the 4-1 win against Brest on Saturday, with Monaco finally up and running in Ligue 1. With the Portugal international seems to have found his mojo back, should Everton go back for him?

Everton have made a fairly underwhelming start to the new Premier League that could see manager Marco Silva bolster his ranks during the January transfer window. One area where he might be looking to strengthen is his attacking department, with more competition required for the likes of Alex Iwobi, Bernard and Richarlison.

Theo Walcott has been a bit-part player at Everton this season and has only made one Premier League start for the Toffees. He has failed to prove himself following his transfer from Arsenal in January 2018, already looking a pale shadow of his former self. With Walcott out of favour, Bernard blowing hot and cold and chances of Richarlison being used through the middle due to lack of goals high in the near future, a move for Gelson Martins should make sense.

Gelson is a right-winger with tremendous pace and trickery, but he can also play on the left or through the middle as a false nine. He is direct and never shies away from taking on his marker down the wide areas. The Portuguese speedster plays with a certain kind of energy and exuberance that would surely help Everton improve upon the potency of their play in the final third, whilst being an upgrade on Walcott.

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The 24-year-old has got experience at both Champions League and international level, which could come handy for Everton. Marco Silva gave Gelson his Sporting debut in 2015, so he could be tempted to join his former manager’s side at Goodison Park if Everton come calling in January.

Verdict

Martins still has a lot to prove, and that desire combined with his quality and experience would certainly make him an exciting addition to the Everton squad in January.