DONE DEAL: Everton confirm £21m signing of Cenk Tosun

Everton have finally completed the signing of Besiktas striker Cenk Tosun for a fee in the region of £21m including multiple add-ons, later reported as €22m euros plus €1.15m, with bonuses of €500,000 if Everton get in Europa League, €750,000 if they get in Champions League as well as other payments linked to appearances and if he tops 25 goals in a season.

The personal terms agreed with the player are reported to be for a four-and-a-half year deal at £125,000 per week.

The deal completes a frantic week for Everton, with the move at one stage looking to be on the brink of collapse. The Toffees reportedly agreed a fee of around £25m at the end of last month and were confident of sealing the deal at the turn of the year.

However, things took a twist when Besiktas upped their asking price as the cost of Tosun’s proposed replacement also increased.

Director of Football Steve Walsh flew out to Turkey earlier this week in a bid to resurrect the deal. Tosun then travelled to the UK in anticipation of an imminent transfer.

With the move seemingly in the balance, Besiktas chairman Fikret Orman flew to England to continue negotiations, with an agreement reached late on Wednesday.

Tosun was then given the green light to travel to Finch Farm and finalise the transfer.

Speaking to EvertonFC.com, here is what Tosun had to say -

It feels great to be an Everton player. I’m really happy to be here and happy that everything is done. I’m really excited to play for Everton as soon as possible. Everton is a great club with a big history and a big culture and I’m looking forward to showing the fans the kind of player I am.

I’m really looking forward to training with my teammates and getting to know them and, of course, I want to play as soon as possible. The Tottenham game will be the first game I am available for and I’m very excited about it already

I know the guys as I’ve always watched Everton’s games from Turkey, so I know a bit about the team already. I hope they can make a lot of assists for me!

Sam Allardyce was a big part of my decision. He said he really wanted me here and to feel that, of course, is another big reason to come to Everton.

The manager is naturally excited by the opportunity to sharpen his attack -

This lad looks like he is strong mentally and has a good pedigree. He is Turkey’s No.1 striker and has scored goals in the Champions League and the Turkish League but he is desperate to play here in the Premier League.

He is an all-rounder, with good movement. He is two-footed, perhaps not the biggest but he’s very efficient in the air and in the box he gets good space to get his head on the ball.

We looked at the qualities of the player, his talent and goalscoring, and his resilience, too. I do not think you can look any more than we have done and, for the price, he is the best in Europe at the moment.”

One of Everton’s biggest mistakes last summer was the failure to replace Romelu Lukaku so Tosun’s arrival should go a long way to rectifying that huge error.

Welcome to the greatest club in the world, Cenk!