Here are your Everton morning headlines for Friday, 21 August.
Everton rumoured to be interested in Florenzi
It has been rumoured in recent days that Carlo Ancelotti is keen to land Italian right-back Alessandro Florenzi, who was out of favour at Roma last season and loaned to Valencia.
He’s now back in Italy and available for a move away, but Everton must sell to buy according to one report .
Contact between the two clubs is said to be “alive” and Florenzi has spoken to former team-mate and current Everton left-back Lucas Digne about the move, according to Italian outlet Il Tempo , but a switch for €10-12million hasn’t yet materialised.
That’s because Everton must first sell Jonjoe Kenny, the report suggests.
The right-back has just returned from a loan himself, with Schalke in the Bundesliga, and currently looks set to challenge in the Blues squad.
Derby date raises questions
The release of the Premier League fixture list brought one particular quirk to Everton fans: they will face Liverpool in the Merseyside derby on October 17, 10 years to the day since the blue half of the city triumphed over the red.
It’s also 14 years since a Merseyside derby was played this early in the season.
The two questions to address from an Everton perspective are different, but with the same potential impact , as Adam Jones explores: when can fans return? And when will signings be made? Both could aid Ancelotti’s team on derby day.
There are currently hopes for some supporters to start coming back into grounds from October, but this is subject to government guidance.
And the transfer window closes on 5 October, with Everton’s very next game against Liverpool.
Former blue Deulofeu left unimpressed with Koeman and Barca
Ex-Everton winger Gerard Deulofeu has unhappy memories of his former manager .
During his time at Goodison Park, Ronald Koeman didn’t help improve Deulofeu, according to the player himself. But when asked about the Dutchman’s appointment as new Barcelona head coach, the Watford winger wasn’t exactly complimentary about the club, either.
“I can tell you about Koeman from my personal experience,” Deulofeu told Cataluna Radio .
“He provided me absolutely nothing. I wasn’t happy, I asked to leave and I went to Milan [on loan].
“The truth is that Barcelona’s [situation] does not bother me,” Deulofeu added. “In fact, right now, I don’t care.
“At Barcelona, they have not had patience with La Masia for years. If you give [the youngsters] time, they learn the style of the first team.
“There are players, many of us have come from there, but not patience. Now there will be changes, but they are years behind.”
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