According to reports in The Sun on Tuesday morning, Everton midfielder Idrissa Gueye could be a transfer target for Premier League rivals Arsenal this summer.
It is a rumour that comes as no surprise as the 27-year-old has quickly established himself as one of the best players in his position in the top flight over the course of the past 18 months during spells with Aston Villa and now the Toffees. He is also often likened to N’Golo Kante, who has been so successful with Leicester City and Chelsea.
Despite Villa’s dismal 2015/16 campaign that saw them relegated from the Premier League for the first time in their history, Gueye secured a £7.1m move to Goodison Park last summer after impressing Everton director of football Steve Walsh, who was also responsible for bringing Kante to England during his time with the Foxes.
The Senegal international was statistically the best midfielder in Europe in the whole of 2016 when it came to the number of interceptions and tackles he had made during the calendar year, and it is no surprise when you look at the figures he has recorded for the Merseyside outfit this term.
Despite missing matches earlier this year because of his participation in the African Cup of Nations, Gueye has made 22 top flight appearances for Everton, making 74 tackles and 50 interceptions in that time.
The role of winning the ball back in the centre of the park appears to be more and more vital in the modern day game, but it isn’t just those numbers that are impressive.
When he does retrieve it, the 27-year-old has has made 1036 successful passes this term with an accuracy of 85%, while he has also shown that he can take on players too rather than just passing it straight away.
His tally of 21 take-ons is admirable, but perhaps the most surprising stat is that he has won 26 aerial duels with a 60% success rate – not bad for a player that only stands at 5’8” tall.
These stats alone show what a huge gap Gueye would leave in the Everton midfield if he did leave, and it would surely take a huge offer from Arsenal to convince them to cash in on the influential star.