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What are the odds on Everton signing Edouard?

If there’s one thing that’s top of the shopping list for Everton planning ahead, it’s a striker who can guarantee goals. While a host of potential targets have been rumoured, Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard is apparently the leading target for Carlo Ancelotti.

If there’s one thing that’s top of the shopping list for Everton planning ahead, it’s a striker who can guarantee goals. Hitting double figures is the minimum requirement each season, although the ideal is would be someone who can bang in 20+ consistently in the Premier League. Clearly, such a talent would potentially cost a lot of money to acquire.

The last striker who could genuinely be referred to as prolific with Everton was Romelu Lukaku. The towering Belgian powerhouse hit double figures in each of his four seasons at Goodison Park, surpassing the 20+ benchmark with 25 goals in 37 Premier League appearances during his final campaign at the club.

While a host of potential targets have been rumoured, Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard is apparently the leading target for Carlo Ancelotti, according to recent reports in the Daily Mail. They claim that Everton have scouted the Frenchman on several occasions, although the Scottish giants would prefer to retain the services of their top marksman.

22-year-old Edouard has scored 22 goals in 27 Scottish Premiership appearances during the 2019-20 campaign, which has attracted plenty of attention from English Premier League clubs. This will inevitably mean that Everton are facing stiff competition for the talented young Frenchman, who started his career at Paris Saint-Germain.

Arsenal at 5/2 odds and Manchester United at 4/1 have been touted as potential destinations for Edouard, and while Everton aren’t priced as the odds-on favourites to sign Odsonne, the Toffees are tipped at 9/1 in the latest football betting. This would suggest there’s a strong chance that Ancelotti lands the striker when the next transfer window opens.

Interestingly, Leicester City have been given 10/1 odds to sign Edouard, who will undoubtedly be keeping a close eye on his current situation. Their manager Brendan Rogers was the man who encouraged Celtic to make the striker a club record £9 million permanent signing at Parkhead, following his initial loan spell. That faith was quickly repaid with regular goals, as the Bhoys won the Scottish Treble.

Earlier in March, the Daily Record in Scotland highlighted that Celtic would look for a transfer fee of at least £30 million, although with so much interest that could lead to a bidding war amongst several Premier League clubs, the valuation for Edouard could rise to around £40 million. Given how inflated prices are these days, that might still be regarded as a bargain for Everton, would be getting a proven young scorer who has yet to hit his peak.

What remains to be seen is how Edouard would fit into the plans of Ancelotti, who tends to favour a 4-4-2 system which features Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison as the attacking duo. Both have done well during the 2019-20 season and could be spurred to greater things, with added competition in the squad and greater tactical flexibility available to the Everton manager.

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