Everton are close to completing the signing of Barcelona defender Jean-Clair Todibo for an initial €20m with €5m in add-ons, report Diario Sport.
Earlier this month, Diario Sport cited how the Blaugrana were ‘back in charge’ of the player’s future as the Schalke – the Bundesliga club where he is on loan – can now no longer afford to trigger their €25m purchase option for the player due to the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The player joined Schalke on loan in January on a short-term loan deal and €1.5m fee, with the German side able to make that permanent this summer – in a deal which would include a €50m buyback for Barca – but now everything has changed.
The report adds that the most likely scenario is that Schalke will now ask for an extended loan deal, rather than permanent move.
Todibo only joined the Catalan giants in January last year, ending a long running contractual dispute with previous club Toulouse in Ligue 1.
The 20-year-old has only been involved in four La Liga matches across the calendar year – with two of his three starts coming after the league title was secured last season.
After being forced to play with the youth team at Toulouse, following his standoff with the club’s management, he was short of match fitness when he arrived at the Camp Nou but was never granted a run in the first-team.
