Everton have confirmed the signing of Abdoulaye Doukour from Watford for a fee believed to be around £22million, with the midfielder penning a three-year deal with the option of a fourth.
The Frenchman was expected to leave Vicarage Road following the Hornets’ relegation from the Premier League last season and join the Toffees in making their intentions known in the transfer window.
Deals have recently been completed for Napoli midfielder Allen and Real Madrid attacker James Rodriguez, while Everton have signed young left-back Nils Nkunko from Marseille on a free transfer.
?? | And one more… Welcome, @abdoudoucoure16! ?#BienvenueDoucouré pic.twitter.com/pHYJ0w2b86
— Everton (@Everton) September 8, 2020
Ducour told Everton’s website: “I’ve been waiting a long time to be here and now it’s here so I’m very happy.
“I had some interest from other clubs but from the start when Everton showed interest in me I told my agent to focus on Everton. That was the only club I wanted to join.
“Everton has a great history in English football and it’s a good club for me to step up in my career. I’m very happy to be an Everton player now and I’m very excited for the future.”
The Merseyside club were previously involved in Ducour last summer, when Marco Silva was in the managerial dugout, but had an offer in the region of £35m rejected.
Ducour previously scored for Watford at Goodison Park/Richard Heathcote/Getty Images.
With Rodriguez, Allen and Ducour’s contracts now confirmed, it will be interesting to see how Everton’s midfield looks in their Premier League opener at Tottenham on Sunday.
Last season Carlo Ancelotti mainly operated a 4-4-2 with a variety of players, including Andre Gomes, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Tom Davies and Fabian Delph, in central midfield.
Rodriguez will be expected to play centrally behind a lone striker, while Allen and Doucoure sit in roles. The latter scored more often for Watford last season, although his tally of four Premier League goals was his worst since 2016/17, his first campaign in English football.
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