Everton now ‘showing interest’ in EFL teenager ahead of January

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Everton are monitoring Barnsley’s Fabio Jalo.

That’s according to TEAMtalk, who have reported that the Toffees could make a January bid for the teenager.

Fabio Jalo joined Barnsley from Benfica last summer and went onto make his senior debut in August of that year, becoming one of the Tykes’ youngest players of all time at only 16 years old.

The ‘sensational’ forward has now made 14 appearances in all competitions for Barnsley, netting his first goal for the club with a wonder strike in their FA Cup draw with Horsham last week.

Jalo has since caught the eye of a number of clubs, with Brighton and Fulham also interested in snapping up the Portugal U18 international.

The report claims all three clubs could make an attempt to sign Jalo in the January transfer window as he is only under contract with Barnsley until the end of the season.

Unless Jalo decides to sign a new contract with the League One club, then the Tykes could be forced to move him on before he has the option to leave for free next summer.

Meanwhile, Sporting Lisbon have also been tracking the winger, though it is unclear whether they will take the next step in their pursuit.

It’s unclear how much Everton would have to cough up to land Jalo, however it is thought that his current market value is only around £130k.

Why wouldn’t Everton try to sign Fabio Jalo?

Fabio Jalo is clearly very highly rated at Oakwell Stadium and already looks to be making his mark in the third tier, despite only just approaching his 18th birthday.

With the youngster already in the final 12 months of his contract, a bargain deal for his signature could be on the cards and it certainly seems like one that Everton need to get in on.

The recent arrivals of Portuguese duo Youssef Chermiti and Beto could maybe help them out in trying to land the youth star, as Everton look to add more young talent to their ranks.

Plus, if Brighton are hot on his tail then he has to be good. The Seagulls have signed the likes of Evan Ferguson, Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo in recent years, so perhaps Sean Dyche’s side would do well to follow in their footsteps with this one.