Wilfried Gnonto was the subject of a huge bid this summer.
That’s according to Angus Kinnear, who told the Square Ball Podcast that Leeds United turned down an offer ‘well in advance’ of £20 million.
Gnonto attracted a lot of interest following his promising debut campaign in the Premier League and it came as no surprise when Everton and other clubs launched bids for him following Leeds’ relegation.
The Italian refused to play for the Whites following their opening day draw with Cardiff City and eventually handed in a transfer request, however the club insisted that he was not for sale.
Various reports claimed Everton had submitted multiple bids in an attempt to lure Gnonto to Goodison Park, with their final offer of around £25 million quickly turned down.
While the Toffees were believed to have been in pole position to sign the winger this summer, the Leeds United CEO has since claimed that they received a much higher offer.
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Did Everton make a fourth bid for Wilfried Gnonto?
Speaking on Square Ball Podcast, Kinnear said: “We could’ve had a similar picture at Leeds United. We accepted the offer for Tyler [Adams]. We could’ve accepted an offer well in advance for that for Willy [Gnonto], significantly in advance of that.
“We could’ve taken an offer for Illan [Meslier] in the mid-20s, an offer for [Luis] Sinisterra at £20m and an offer for Pascal Struijk in the low teens.”
Bournemouth triggered Adams’ release clause of £25m to sign him from Leeds United last month, with Kinnear claiming the bid for Gnonto was ‘well in advance’ of that figure.
Unless Everton made a fourth unknown bid, then that suggests another club were prepared to cough up significantly more cash to land Gnonto.
It was clear that the Yorkshire outfit valued the teenager a lot higher than Everton and, in hindsight, it never looked like they were going to be able to afford him.