Everton send weakened side to Algarve Cup

It’s been a strange week at Everton with the Blues being linked to a number of transfer moves both in and out of the club, but nothing actually getting completed before the squad jetted off yesterday to Faro, Portugal for the Algarve Cup this weekend.

As the Echo are reporting, a couple of players who have been linked with moves away did not make the traveling party and the questions around their futures will continue to swirl.

Ademola Lookman missed the friendly against Bury on Wednesday night ostensibly with a minor thigh issue and was not spotted at Gigg Lane despite being on the teamsheet. The 20-year-old has been the subject of repeated offers from RB Leipzig and has not gone to Portugal. The Bundesliga side were reported to have been preparing a third bid closer to the Blues £20m valuation, and reports say the player wants the move as well.

Yannick Bolasie was held out of the Bury game too with a stomach ailment and the report says that he too stayed back at Finch Farm still recovering from the bug. The winger has been linked with a loan move to Turkish side Fenerbahce, though it appears the player wants to stay in the Premier League where Leicester City and his former side Crystal Palace are interested as well.

Also staying back were Cuco Martina who played on Wednesday but apparently fell prey to the same stomach bug and Theo Walcott who missed the midweek friendly with an ankle issue he has been carrying since Austria.

Joining the squad to Portugal however were two of the Blues’ World Cup stars Gylfi Sigurdsson and Idrissa Gueye who resumed training earlier on Friday before flying out with the rest of the squad.

Late Friday the Blues appeared to be very close to adding the first players to the squad in this summer transfer window with Marco Silva’s former player at Watford FC Richarlison and Barcelona’s left back Lucas Digne apparently very close to signing for the Toffees.