Everton are facing an uphill battle to retain one of their key academy talents who has been likened to a Bayern Munich starlet for his pacey attributes and physical acumen.
The Toffees’ hot prospect Thierry Small ‘could become the next young English player to be tempted abroad’ amid interest from some of Europe’s elite clubs, according to the Daily Mail.
The report claimed that the 16-year-old is regarded by many as the best left-back in the country of his age and has drawn comparisons with Canadian left-back Alphonso Davies, who currently stars for Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.
As a consequence, the list of interested suitors is only intensifying for the young left-back. Bayern themselves are keen, along with Benfica, Wolfsburg, Valencia and Monaco.
To compound the headache for the Toffees, Premier League rivals Arsenal have also asked to be kept in the loop with developments as they continue to track the homegrown prospect.
Small has featured for Everton’s under-23s and under-18s, and scored twice in the latter’s recent 3-2 win over Burnley, according to the Daily Mail.
Everton are reportedly ‘doing all they can’ to keep Small at Goodison Park and have offered him a ‘generous’ three-year senior professional contract – an indication as to how highly they value the teenager.
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Small will likely be a prominent name for any avid Evertonian who follows the exploits of the club’s youth teams.
He is evidently garnering a huge level of attention, so Everton have done the right thing in shrewdly presenting a worthy contract offer to a young talent who could soon break into the Toffees’ first team plans. However, it may not be enough to persuade the youngster to snub interest from some massive clubs.
