Everton have been without Iliman Ndiaye since their 2-0 loss to Chelsea in the middle of last month due to his participation in the African Cup of Nations.
The attacking midfielder is competing with Senegal and has missed five Premier League matches for the Toffees, in which time they have picked up just one win.
Ndiaye has scored four goals and provided two assists in 16 appearances in the Premier League this season, per Sofascore, after a return of nine goals in 33 games in the division last term.
David Moyes will surely be patiently awaiting the return of the 25-year-old star from AFCON, because he has the quality to be a difference-maker in the final third.
Everton are in talks to sign £12m star
By the time that Ndiaye is back on Merseyside and ready to play again in the Premier League, the Blues could have a new teammate for him to play with.
According to Africa Foot, Everton are one of a number of sides interested in a deal to sign Genk right-back Zakaria El Ouahdi in the January transfer window.
The Morocco international has become a target for the Toffees, Crystal Palace, and Benfica, who are all looking to snap him up from the Belgian side this month.
Africa Foot claims that Everton and Palace have both made contact with Genk and are now in talks with the Pro League giants over a potential deal for the defender.
The report adds that El Ouahdi, who is reportedly valued at £12m, is keen on a move to the Premier League this month, which gives Palace and Everton an edge over Benfica in the race to secure his signature before the end of the January transfer window.
Why Ndiaye would love El Ouahdi
If the Toffees can beat Palace and Benfica to the signing of the Genk right-back in the coming days or weeks, Moyes could have an exciting full-back on his hands.
Ndiaye, in particular, could benefit a lot from his arrival at the Hill Dickinson, because the Morocco international is an attack-minded right-back who can push up and support the Senegalese star down the right flank.
Typically, Ndiaye has played down the right side with Jake O’Brien, a natural centre-back, at right-back. This has meant that the attacking midfielder has not had a lot of attacking support down that side, and defenders do not fear O’Brien as much as they would a genuine attacking full-back.
El Ouahdi’s performances for Genk in the Pro League in recent seasons suggest that he has the potential to carry a big threat at the top end of the pitch, which would force opposition defenders to pay more attention to Everton’s right-back, giving Ndiaye more space to work with.
|
25/26 season |
El Ouahdi (Pro League) |
O’Brien (PL) |
|---|---|---|
|
Appearances |
14 |
21 |
|
Goals |
4 |
0 |
|
Key passes per game |
1.4 |
0.5 |
|
Big chances created |
1 |
0 |
|
xA |
1.77 |
0.53 |
|
Assists |
1 |
1 |
|
Successful dribbles per game |
0.9 |
0.2 |
|
Stats via Sofascore |
||
As you can see in the table above, the Genk star has the potential to offer significantly more to the team as an offensive force in comparison to O’Brien, with almost three times as many chances created per game on average.
The Everton full-back has only completed 27% of his attempted dribbles in the Premier League, per Sofascore, which illustrates how uncomfortable he is progressing the ball up the pitch from a full-back position, whilst El Ouahdi has completed 52% of his in the Pro League.
These statistics show that the £12m-rated star, who was described as a “complete” full-back by talent scout Jacek Kulig, could form an exciting attacking partnership with Ndiaye down the right.
El Ouahdi also scored six goals and created six ‘big chances’ in the Pro League last term, per Sofascore, which shows that his success at the top end of the pitch this season is far from a flash in the pan.
Premier League defenders could, therefore, be wary of the threat that the Moroccan star can pose in the final third, and pay more attention to the runs that he makes going forward.
That, in turn, could create more space for Ndiaye to slip into central positions to receive the ball inside to turn and create or score goals, or to return the pass to El Ouahdi on the overlap if he is the one in space.
Therefore, Ndiaye could love this signing if Everton are able to get a deal over the line in the coming weeks, because of the positive impact that it could have on his role in the attack.
