Everton showed during the summer transfer window just how active and efficient they can be in terms of securing deals for players who they want to sign.
However, it seems as though they may have been hit with a potential setback to their hopes of signing one player who they were reportedly eyeing over the summer.
According to a recent report from Calciomercato, Inter Milan are trying to tie down Hakan Calhanoglu to a new deal at the San Siro after the Toffees shared their interest in signing the midfielder during the summer.
After making 172 appearances for AC Milan, during which he scored 32 goals and delivered 49 assists, the 28-year-old joined his current club in the summer of 2021. Since then, the Turkish international has found the net 10 times and supplied 14 assists in 56 appearances across all competitions.
These goal contributions make it easy to see why the Merseyside club were reportedly interested in bringing him to Goodison Park during the summer transfer window.
With seven Serie A appearances to his name this season, the midfielder has made the joint-most key passes (15) at Inter and the joint-highest number of successful pressures (28). This shows just how effective the £155k-per-week star can be in the middle of the park both with and without the ball.
His latest appearance for Inter saw him score the winning goal in their 1-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League in midweek and earn the highest match rating out of any player on the night according to SofaScore (7.7/10).
Hailed as an “intelligent” player by his former Milan boss Stefano Pioli, Calhanoglu would surely be an exciting signing for Everton and Lampard, who must be hoping that the 28-year-old doesn’t sign a new deal at Inter, especially if the Toffees have future plans to launch a bid for him.
Having also been described by Piolo as a “leader” on the pitch, this could also be a valuable trait to bring to Merseyside, as it is something which could make him a very useful figure for the team.
