Everton made summer offer to Ajax star Ziyech

Ajax forward Hakim Ziyech had an offer on the table from Everton this summer, according to reports.

The Moroccan was one of the few Ajax superstars to remain at the Johan Cruyff Arena this summer, with both Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong having left for Juventus and Barcelona respectively.

While there was plenty of speculation that Ziyech, who scored 21 goals in all competitions last season, would leave Ajax this summer, he eventually signed a new contract with the Dutch club.

However he could have joined Everton, if a Chelsea scout is to be believed.

Talking to De Volkskrant (via Sport Witness), Chelsea scout Piet de Visser claimed that the Toffees had put a sizeable contract in front of Ziyech in the summer. De Visser said:

Now Ajax has been able to keep a good core. Overmars did that well.

Ziyech has signed again. Then why would he go to Everton for four million? It is also nice for the whole of the Netherlands that Ajax has kept its good players.

Everyone was in the lead last season at the Champions League, and this season again.

Of course you have people who are jealous, that it is an exaggeration and a shame. So what? They have never had so much money in the bank.

While De Visser doesn’t clarify the details of the Blues’ proposed offer, it does seem as though they were keen on signing the goalscoring attacking midfielder.

Read Everton Verdict

I think it is safe to assume that the aforementioned €4million was concerning a contract offer to Ziyech, and it is interesting to see that Everton did harbour legitmate interest.

Everton were clearly in the market for a creative player who could play out wide, and Ziyech meets that remit. The Moroccan was frequently linked with Everton, as was his teammate David Neres, with Marcel Brands’ Dutch link a big reason behind that.

Ziyech rejecting the chance to join Everton isn’t that surprising either. He probably expected offers from bigger clubs, and having reached a Champions League semi-final last season, I can’t imagine he was keen to go back to playing zero European football this season.