20 July 2023 , 11:52
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Arnaut Danjuma has agreed to join Everton for the second time in six months – and this time the move should go through.
Danjuma is poised to join Everton on a season-long loan from Villarreal after speaking with manager Sean Dyche. The 26-year-old winger will help the Toffees try and recover from a poor 2022/23 campaign which saw them avoid relegation from the Premier League on the final day of the season.
Everton are already very familiar with what Danjuma can offer, having got extremely close to signing him back in January. The Dutchman went as far as completing a medical and filming an announcement video before Tottenham swooped in to sign him from under Everton’s nose.
Tottenham took Danjuma on loan for the second half of the 2022/23, with the sacking of Frank Lampard providing the opportunity to gazump Everton. Danjuma scored two goals in 12 appearances for Spurs after making it very clear why he preferred to join the north London club over Everton.
“It is amazing. I’m very delighted to be here,” he told Spurs TV upon his arrival. “As soon as Tottenham came through for me, it was a no-brainer.
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“It’s a massive club, brilliant coach, brilliant staff, brilliant club, the facilities are obviously unbelievable so for me I’m very excited to be part of the team. I’m really looking forward to working with the manager.”
That manager, Antonio Conte, did not last much longer. He was sacked two months after Danjuma arrived and, in a funny turn of events, the winger has found himself going full circle back to Everton.
Arnaut Danjuma did not make much of an impact at Tottenham (Getty Images)Everton desperately need more firepower in their squad and believe Danjuma can help them improve on the 34 goals they managed in 38 Premier League games last season. Dyche is constrained by the club’s poor financial situation so the opportunity to sign Danjuma on loan fits the bill.
Asked about incoming transfers earlier this week, Dyche told the Liverpool Echo : “We’ll just wait and see. We’re active and are trying to open up situations.
“It’s a tough situation all round because money often makes deals go through. It’s not just that – I say it all the time – people have got to agree things. We’re active, people are working very, very hard to see what we can do in the market.”
Danjuma is expected to undergo a second Everton medical in the coming days and will become their second summer signing, after free agent Ashley Young. According to the Daily Mail, the Toffees are interested in signing Almeria forward El Bilal Toure and Ajax forward Brian Brobbey.
Everton beat Stade Nyonnais 2-1 in a pre-season friendly on July 14 and will begin their 2023/24 season against Fulham on August 12.