Everton have been linked with a move for Edon Zhegrova, but what could the Juventus winger potentially bring to the Blues?
Italian journalist Mirko Di Natale reports interest from Everton this summer, along with clubs in France (Lens and Monaco) and Turkey (Besiktas and Trabzonspor). The Athletic's David Ornstein flagged up Everton's pursuit back in February, indicating the longest standing interest among the chasing pack.
Background
Zhegrova was born on March 31, 1999, in Herford, North West Germany, the hometown of former German international Thomas Helmer. He played youth football in Kosovo and Belgium before starting his senior career with Genk. After two seasons in the Jupiler Pro League (2017-19), he spent three-and-a-half years in Switzerland with Basel before joining Lille in January 2022.
He netted 26 goals in 107 appearances for Lille before a €15.5 million transfer to Juventus last summer. Despite signing a five-year deal, he failed to score in 27 Serie A matches this season. Kosovo's youngest ever goalscorer, he has struck five times in 46 international appearances.
Playing Style Comparison
Comparisonator calculates that Manchester City's Rayan Cherki and Sunderland's Betrand Traore are closest to Zhegrova in playing style (97% match), followed by Leeds United's Daniel James (93%).
Zhegrova averages just 2.663km ground covered per 90 minutes, lower than any Premier League peer in that category. However, he fares better in distance per minute (106m), ranking seventh. His 0.78 shots per 90 minutes would rank 23rd in the Premier League, while 0.44 shots on target would place 16th. More encouraging are his 2.67 successful dribbles per 90 minutes, ranking seventh, just behind Everton's Iliman Ndiaye (2.69).
He has a 66% score for successful offensive actions, just behind the Premier League top two, and his 57% shots on target percentage is bettered only by Cole Palmer (61%) and Ndiaye (60%). He retains possession well, with 4.56 ball losses per 90 minutes, fewer than Premier League leader Estevao (5). Out of possession, he works hard with a 77% score for successful defensive actions, topping Palmer (67%).
His average of 1.1 successful crosses per 90 minutes would place him seventh in the Premier League. However, only a couple of Premier League peers average fewer successful passes per 90 minutes than his 11.11.
Considerations for Everton
With question marks over loan pair Jack Grealish and Tyrique George, plus Ndiaye, David Moyes may be cautious after another winger from Serie A, Jesper Lindstrom, failed to score at Napoli, Everton, and Wolfsburg. Zhegrova's profile suggests he could be more like Rayan Cherki than Lindstrom, but the risk remains.
Comparisonator is a football data comparison tool from 271 professional leagues worldwide, comparing players and clubs using 378 parameters.
