Lucas Digne returns to Barcelona to finalize move to Everton

Barcelona have formally announced that Lucas Digne is finalizing a move from the club, and Sky Sports and ESPN Barcelona correspondent Samuel Marsden indicate that it will be to join Everton. The left back was unable to break into Ernesto Valverde’s lineup last season and has been linked with the Toffees for some time, so this news comes as no surprise.

The search for a true left back to help out Leighton Baines has been over a year in the making. While this probably isn’t the player I would have preferred, it’s great to finally have this done. Digne makes the second signing of new Director of Football Marcel Brands, and as the Richarlison signing is seen as primarily the idea of new manager Marco Silva, Digne represents one of the first real fingerprints of Brands on the club.

Digne does not offer much going forward, but he is an excellent tackler and should be a very reliable defensive option. Given the abysmal form the Everton defense has had in their preseason, that should be welcome. At 25 years old, this seems to be a move to eventually replace the long serving fan favorite Baines, and he and Seamus Coleman could be our starting fullbacks for the foreseeable future.

As previously reported on RBM, this move will instigate a further loan of promising young left back Antonee Robinson to Bolton. This deal was at one point rumored to be connected to Everton’s pursuit of Yerry Mina, but it now appears the deals will be done separately, reportedly for an Everton friendly £13 million. Overall, this represents a solid piece of business for the Toffees, and should save us from any further attempts of Cuco Martina ‘playing’ ‘left back’.