Bengaluru, Aug 23: Everton have made a pretty convincing start to life under their new manager Rafael Benitez having taken four points in their opening two games having beaten Southampton 3-1 and drawn 2-2 against Leeds United.
Scoring goals has not been a problem for them thus far with the Toffees having scored five goals already but they have work to do in the defensive department as they have already conceded thrice. However, the Toffees continue to be linked with further attacking reinforcements and have reportedly made a £32 million bid for Lazio forward Joaquin Correa.
The Copa America winner with Argentina has been attracting immense interest from a host of clubs across Europe with Serie A holders Inter Milan also keen on the 27-year-old. However, with the Nerazzurri's financial struggle well-documented, the Toffees have a big advantage in pursuit of the former Sevilla star.
Despite the fact that Everton are not particularly short of options in the attacking third, it has been pretty evident that Benitez wants to add one more attacker even after signing Demarai Gray and Andros Townsend.
They were strongly linked with the likes of Dwight McNeil, Todd Cantwell, and several others. However, the addition of someone like Correa can take the Merseyside club to the next level thanks to his immense experience at the highest level and most crucially his versatility.
Players like Correa are dreams of every manager with the Argentine international capable of filling in effortlessly at any position across the forward line. He predominantly played as a secondary striker for Lazio last season behind Ciro Immobile but also filled in at number nine as well as at number ten when called upon by the manager. He is also more than capable of playing on either flank and used to be regularly deployed on the flanks during the earlier years of his career.
Benitez is more of an old-school manager who tends to deploy his teams in a 4-4-2 system unlike most of his Premier League counterparts who usually believe in modern-day formations like 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1, or 3-4-3.
The Spaniard has inherited a perfect number nine for his system in the form of Dominic Calvert-Lewin who is a menace in the air and can outmuscle opponent defenders with his physical prowess. The English international could prove to be the perfect foil for someone like Correa who relies more on his technical abilities, intelligent movement, pace, and vision.
With the likes of Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison, Gray, Townsend, Kean, Iwobi, and possibly James Rodriguez already at his disposal at Goodison Park, Benitez has plenty of firepower in his locker. The arrival of Correa could be enough to finally fire the Toffees to their much-desired top four spot.