Everton are set to join Arsenal in the race for Inter Milan midfielder Marcelo Brozovic, who is reportedly available in the transfer market this January.
The Italian outfit have already gotten rid of midfielder Joao Mario after he was loaned out to Premier League club West Ham United and as per reports, the Nerrazurris could also be looking to offload Brozovic in an attempt to pave way for Javier Pastore to join them from PSG.
Everton, on the other hand, could do with the services of a midfielder in the January transfer window, following the loss of James McCarthy, who suffered a nasty leg-break, earlier this month. In addition, new signing Davy Klaassen has also struggled to impose himself in the Premier League following his big-money move from Ajax in the summer. Therefore, the Toffees could definitely use someone like Marcelo Brozovic to boost their midfield options this season.
The Croatian International, himself, has struggled to get proper game-time under Luciano Spalletti, featuring in just 687 minutes of league action so far.
Having been compared with Chelsea legend Frank Lampard, Brozovic is a dynamic midfielder, who can make a big difference in the centre of the park. Although he may not have the same goal-scoring prowess as compared to the Chelsea legend, he certainly makes up for it, with his ability to frequently spite forward with darting runs into the opposition channels.
The 25-year-old is an attack-minded midfielder, who can also handle himself in tight spaces, thanks to his remarkable dribbling skills. Furthermore, he is also a very secure passer of the ball and is very good when it comes to ball-circulation. The Croatian International acquired an impressive passing accuracy of 85% for Inter last season.
The former Dinamo Zagreb midfielder has already proven himself to be an excellent creator in the final third. In just 15 matches this season, he has already provided 27 chances, which is only bettered by Antonio Candreva and Ivan Perisic. But then again, a tally of two chances created per game is by no means a bad statistic.
Overall, Everton could be hugely boosted by the addition of Marcelo Brozovic, especially after losing Ross Barkley to Chelsea this winter. That being said, however, the Croatian’s lack of defensive output could be one of the few reasons for Everton to worry about and Big Sam’s tactical philosophy may not actually be ideal for the Inter Milan man, who is largely familiar with a more possession-based football.
Stats Courtesy: Whoscored