Striker reveals Everton blocked January move

Few players have suffered from Everton’s change in management more than Cenk Tosun.

The Turkey forward was brought in by Sam Allardyce last January to play the role of target man, as Allardyce deployed his usual direct style of football.

After a slow start, Tosun began to adapt to the Premier League and even went on a run of scoring four goals in three matches during early spring.

Unfortunately for 27-year-old, the arrival of Marco Silva last summer changed the course of his Toffees career.

Silva prefers more mobile strikers, like Richarlison or Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who can play in more than one forward position.

Tosun, despite being a decent finisher, simply isn’t mobile enough to fit into Silva’s style and so has struggled to nail down a regular starting place as a result.

The club are keen to move Tosun on this summer but the striker himself has always been reluctant to leave.

Speaking to Turkish website Sabah, via Sport Witness after scoring twice for Turkey in their European Championship qualifier against Moldova, Tosun again reiterated his desire to stay in the Premier League if possible.

“I have still a lot to do in the Premier League. I still have a three-and-a-half-year contract with Everton. I want to continue in Europe. My aim is to play more.”

Tosun also confirmed that Everton had received loan offers in January but blocked any move.

“I had offers from Spanish and English clubs. I told the club I am ready to go out on loan to return stronger, but they told me they needed me here.”

That decision is likely to be down to numbers rather than any change of heart over his long-term future. With no replacement lined up Silva did not want to be left short of forward options for the second half of the season.

Tosun’s attitude cannot be faulted and for that reason he still has plenty of support from the fans. Sadly, he just doesn’t look capable of scoring on a consistent basis in the top flight, especially in the system Silva deploys.

I still expect Tosun to move on in the summer, with the main question being how much of his reported £27m fee Everton can recoup.