Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has taken to social media to announce that Everton have triggered a contract extension for midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure.
The £20m Everton man is now set to extend his stay at Goodison Park for ‘one more year’ according to Romano.
With Doucoure’s existing deal set to expire in the summer, there has been talk for some weeks that the club would trigger the option to extend it by one more season, which it appears they now have.
Tweeting the news, Romano stated: “Understand Everton have triggered the option clause to extend Abdoulaye Doucoure’s contract. Deal will be valid for one more year now.”
The Mali international joined the Blues from Watford in a £20m deal back in the summer of 2020, and while he fell out of favour with previous manager Frank Lampard, he has been a regular starter since Sean Dyche’s January appointment.
Indeed, the 30-year-old has featured in every game since Dyche took over at Goodison Park, with the exception of the three games for which he was banned following a straight red card against Spurs back in April.
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With four goals and two assists in 24 Premier League games this season, Doucoure has been instrumental in the style Dyche has tried to implement at Goodison Park.
Part of a midfield trio, Doucoure’s work rate and pace on the counter-attack has seen him be effective both in attack and defence, and extending his stay by one more year might not be the worst idea for Everton.
A stellar display at the Amex Stadium saw Doucoure score two first-half goals as Everton demolished Brighton & Hove Albion 5-1.
Indeed, Everton could do with a big performance from Doucs this weekend as the Blues face a must-win game at home to Bournemouth on Sunday.