The 22-year-old’s impressive form for the Brazilian side has attracted interest from Europe, but he is not ready to discuss a move yet
Gremio winger Everton says he will wait until the season is over before considering a possible move to Manchester United.
The 22-year-old has made 130 appearances for the Brazilian side since making his debut in 2014. The 2018 campaign is his first as a regular starter, though, and he has netted 16 of his 31 goals this term.
Everton’s bright performances for the Copa Libertadores semi-finalists saw him make his national team debut in September, when he featured against USA and El Salvador.
The attacker’s growing reputation has reportedly attracted interest from United, who are said to be considering a £30 million ($39m) bid after sending scouts to watch him. According to ESPN, Manchester City are also monitoring his situation.
But Everton is in no hurry to start discussing a switch to Old Trafford just yet.
“We all hear the rumours at some point, right?,” he told SporTV when asked about talk of United’s interest.
“I’m going through an exceptional phase, and we know how hard it is when clubs from England look at Brazilian players, for their quality.
“Let’s see what happens at the end of the season, wait until it is over, and see what’s best both for me and Gremio.”
Everton is contracted to Gremio until December 2022 after signing a new deal in August.
United boss Jose Mourinho will have to wait to see if he is handed funds to make a move for Everton or other potential January signings.
Mourinho added Alexis Sanchez to his squad in the last January transfer window and his arrival from Arsenal, which saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan head in the opposite direction, led to a significant increase in the club’s wage bill.
United’s total wage bill for the quarter ending September 30, 2018 was £77 million, an increase of £7.1m (10.2 per cent) on the same period in 2017-18 before the winter signing of the Chilean attacker.
The club have also handed new contracts to Marouane Fellaini and Luke Shaw since the spring, but it is the £390,000 weekly wage of Sanchez which has seemingly had the biggest impact on the club’s costs.
Those figures formed part of the release last week of the club’s financial results for the first quarter of 2018-19.