Trio of Prem clubs chasing Gladbach midfielder Zakaria
Premier League sides Arsenal, Tottenham and Everton are all interested in Gladbach’s Denis Zakaria, according to reports.
Zakaria is a defensive midfielder who featured 25 times in the Bundesliga last season, helping Gladbach to finish eighth.
Despite being just 24 years old, he’s been heavily linked with a move to England for what seems like years.
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And it looks like such a transfer could finally take shape this month.
German outlet Sport Bild (via ESPN) reports that Arsenal, Tottenham and Everton are all monitoring his situation.
A bidding war could begin before the transfer window closes if one of those clubs submits an official offer.
Italian sides Napoli and Roma are also named as holding an interest.
The report claims that Zakaria could be available for as little as €20million (£17m) this summer as he has entered the final 12 months of his contract.
Gladbach would rather move him on this year than lose such a talented player for free.
Arsenal have already brought in Belgian midfielder Albert Sambi Lokonga from Anderlecht during the off-season.
He cost the Gunners an initial £15m which could rise to £19m, so it’s unclear whether club officials would be willing to sanction another midfield arrival.
North London rivals Tottenham, meanwhile, have so far spent £21m to sign Bryan Gil from Sevilla. The transfer also involved Erik Lamela going in the other direction.
They recently parted with over £46m to land top defensive target Cristian Romero from Atalanta.
They might need to sell a senior squad member, such as Moussa Sissoko, before Zakaria can be pursued.
Everton are yet to spend big this summer. They’ve brought in Andros Townsend, Asmir Begovic and Demarai Gray for a combined fee of £1.7m.
But a move for Zakaria could be prohibited by Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations.
Football finance expert Kieran Maguire recently spoke to the Liverpool Echo about the Toffees’ situation.
“If you take a look at Everton’s accounts over the last few years, they’ve had significant losses,” he said.
“While I think Farhad Moshiri has the cash to spend, it’s not a case of won’t spend it’s more that they can’t spend.
“They are very much constricted by Financial Fair Play.
“They’ve had some very generous sponsorship deals from Alisher Usmanov’s empire which have helped them to stay within FFP but ultimately that catches up with you, and they’re now in a position where they’ve got next to no wiggle room.”