Everton could solve major problem with bargain transfer who tops Phil Foden in key area

Everton have been linked with a potential move for Jacob Bruun Larsen but just what might the on-loan Burnley winger bring to their side?

Blues boss Sean Dyche, whose previous post was a nine-and-a-half year stint in charge of the Clarets, already has a couple of players in the squad who turned out for him during his time in East Lancashire in the shape of James Tarkowski and Dwight McNeil who both arrived on Merseyside before him. With the likes of Tommy Lawton, Martin Dobson and Trevor Steven having all made the switch in the past, the flow of talent from Turf Moor to Goodison Park is a well-trodden path.

Back in Bruun Larsen’s native Denmark, Bold reports that Everton and West Ham United – where David Moyes is to be replaced by former Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Julen Lopetegui – have concretely identified the 25-year-old as a target for the summer transfer window. The player, who joined his parent club Hoffenheim from Borussia Dortmund, where he progressed through the youth ranks, in 2020, has one year to run on his contract with the Bundesliga outfit but Vincent Kompany could have a job on his hands convincing him to make a permanent switch to Burnley following their relegation straight back to the Championship.

Despite the Clarets’ struggles – they’ve lost 23 of their matches heading into their final fixture at home to Nottingham Forest – Bruun Larsen, who has been capped six times for his country, netting once at international level, has been one of their shining lights. He’s scored a career-high seven goals so far this term, six of which have been in the Premier League.

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A versatile forward, the right-footer has been deployed by Kompany all across the front line. He’s had a dozen outings on the left wing, nine on the right, three as centre-forward and one as a central attacking midfielder behind the striker.

Out of all the Premier League players in his position, Comparisonator shows us that Bruun Larsen has the highest shots on target percentage in the division with a score of 63%, putting him ahead of Manchester City’s Phil Foden (58%) and Crystal Palace’s Jeffrey Schlupp (56%). He is also ranked third for shots on target with an average of 1.13 per 90 minutes, behind Foden (1.37) and Ebereche Eze of Crystal Palace (1.19) but above Liverpool’s Luis Diaz (1).

Dyche would be encouraged to see that the Dane is willing to also put a shift in though and he is rated third for defensive aerial duels won (0.47) behind Lucas Paqueta of West Ham United (0.57) and Schlupp (0.53). He comes in at seventh among Premier League peers for ball recoveries in his own half (2.26), a category topped by Paqueta with 3.23 and his figure is higher than McNeil in ninth on 2.11 while when it comes to overall ball recoveries, the Everton man is seventh with 4.72 while Bruun Larsen is ninth on 4.43.

Player trading for Dyche and director of football Kevin Thelwell is still very much a movable feast this summer with question marks over the takeover of Everton and transfer budgets but as proven Premier League quality at a potentially reasonable price then Bruun Larsen, who should be approaching his peak years, seems to offer a decent proposition as Jack Harrison and Arnaut Danjuma’s loan spells come to an end.

*Comparisonator is a football data comparison tool from 271 professional leagues around the world which compares players and clubs by utilising over 100 different parameters. Click here for more details.