Everton contact Fiorentina about possible Nikola Kalinic transfer

Everton have been quickly running out of time with regards to finding a true target man for the 2017/18 season. Crystal Palace don’t want to sell Christian Benteke, and Olivier Giroud doesn’t seem to want to exit Arsenal just yet.

However, Steve Walsh’s highly publicized trip to Italy might have finally paid off. According to Sky Sports Italy and numerous other reports, Everton may be prepared to pay up to €25 million for star Fiorentina striker Nikola Kalinić.

Kalinic, a Croatian international, is also being tracked by AC Milan. However, the San Siro side has Carlos Bacca, Gianluca Lapadula, and Andre Silva on their books, and retain an interest in Diego Costa or Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

At 29 years of age, Kalinic probably has a few more years of high level performance in the tank. In almost 3200 minutes with Fiorentina last season, the Croatian registered 20 goals and 4 assists - an excellent return.

With Kalinic on board, Everton would only lack Gylfi Sigurdsson to complete their revamped attack. With the recent news that Ross Barkley might stick around, the Blues would be looking at numerous goalscoring options, which is something that Ronald Koeman has said he prefers.

The Giroud deal is looking increasingly unlikely. Nikola Kalinic would be an excellent consolation prize.